Spirit of a warrior
by mmac
Summary: Rin Slovak was born on the dark planet of Keket. His people have had no contact with other races and are suspicious of outsiders. Despite this, Rin has always wondered what was beyond his small world. His world is turned upside down when the Separatist army attacks his home. This leads Rin to great trials as he tries to find his place in the universe.
1. Chapter 1: Dreams

Chapter 1: Dreams

"Rin. Rin. Rin!" Mr. Sato yelled, "Stop your daydreaming and get back to work!"

Rin Slovak was snapped out of his thoughts by his employer's harsh yells. "Y-yes sir. I'm on it."

He was supposed to be focussing on harvesting the gava fruits from the trees. It was hard for him to stay focused on the harvest when the sky was as clear as it was. There wasn't a cloud in sight and the stars were so clear. He loved looking up at the sky. He loved to dream about the worlds that were out there. He wondered what it would be like to live on a planet that actually received light from the sun. Harvesting fruit seemed like such a small task when there was a whole universe out there.

But these dreams of other worlds were just that, dreams. There was no way he would ever be able to see the universe. There was not a vehicle on the planet of Keket that had the ability to travel through space and as far as he knew there never was. It would be amazing if the Yokios people could develop the technology for space travel. There had to be other life out there.

There was a legend that was told to the children about outsiders from another world. The legend told of greedy beings that wanted nothing but destruction. Because of this legend, many were afraid of the universe outside their own world. Rin wasn't. He wanted to know about what was beyond their world.

Rin sighed and continued to pick the gava fruits. He scurried along the trees picking the small, purple fruits and putting them in the bag he was holding with his tail. He did his best not to look up at the sky and tried to focus on his job.

In nearby trees, other pickers were far ahead of him. They didn't daydream or look up at the stars. They just did their job. Rin thought that it must be nice to be able to stay focused like that. At the same time he pitied them because they never questioned if there was anything bigger than themselves.

After four more hours of picking Gava fruits, Mr. Sato finally let them go. Rin was exhausted from the work. He wanted to go home and watch the stars.

"Nice work out there Slovak," a boy about his age sneered. His name was Koda and he and his group of friends usually gave Rin problems. They usually picked on him because of his smaller size and how he was always daydreaming. "Because of your daydreaming, the rest of us have to work harder to meet the quota."

Despite both of them being fourteen, Koda was almost a head taller than Rin. He was muscular with broad shoulders and good looking. He was everything that his people prided themselves on. Rin was envious of Koda's good looks and hair. Koda always had his black hair combed back and it made him look tough. Whenever Rin tried to comb back his hair he looked like an idiot and his hair never stayed combed. No matter what he did with his hair it would never stay kept.

"I only have one less sack full than you," Rin answered, "And I am meeting the quota just fine."

"You're meeting the minimum quota. You are still not keeping up with the rest of us."

"Look Koda, I don't have time for this, I have to get home," Rin said. He did not want to get into a confrontation with Koda and his boys because he knew that he would lose.

Rin had turned to leave but Koda had grabbed him by the tail and pulled him back. Rin ended up on his back with four large guys staring down at him.

"I don't suppose that you be interested in talking about this like intelligent beings?" Rin asked.

Koda and his gang shook their heads.

"No, I didn't think so. That would imply that you were intelligent beings," Rin said without thinking. This comment looked to have angered the gang even more. Why couldn't he keep his big mouth shut?

With a wave of his hand, Rin channelled his spirit energy and pushed the boys away from him. It was like an invisible hand had pulled them away from him. All the boys except Koda and one other landed on their feet. The rest were on their backs.

Rin knew he made a mistake by doing that. Before they were just going to use their fists to hurt him. By pushing them back it was an invitation that it was a free for all. All Yokios could channel spirit energy to cause objects to move. Some were so skilled that they could summon lightning.

"So that's how it's going to be huh?" Koda said, "Alright then. We were just going to give you a simple beating. Now you're asking for it."

Koda moved his hand and a nearby rock rose up. Another movement and the rock hurled towards Rin. Rin dodged it easily. The rock hit the Gava tree and shattered. It left a large gash in the side of the tree. Koda was strong but lacked accuracy. Koda threw another and Rin dodged it again.

"Is that the best you got?" Rin mocked, "You couldn't hit me if you tried."

Rin had spoken too soon. The other members of Koda gang had also had rocks levitating around them. They all threw the rocks at once. Rin was able to dodge a few but there too many. One struck him in the back of the head. It threw him off balance and disoriented him. More rocks hit him. One to the stomach, another to his left knee, shoulders, kidney and arms.

Rin fell to the ground. His whole body ached. Why didn't he run when he had the chance?

"What's going on over there?" Mr. Sato called out.

"Uh-oh. Busted," one gang member said.

Koda knelt down next to Rin. "Next time twerp. Next time you won't be so lucky. Remember your place. There is no way that you will ever beat me."

Koda and his gang ran off leaving Rin in the dirt. Rin tried to stand but his head was spinning too badly. He felt like he was going to vomit.

"Are you all right son?" Mr. Sato asked as he approached Rin.

"I'll be fine," Rin answered. He tried to stand again but fell to his knees. He wished the world would stop spinning so fast.

"Do you want me to call your folks?"

"No. I'm fine." His father was always saying that he should stand up for himself. What would he say if he saw that he had been a victim of Koda and his gang again?

On his third attempt Rin was able to stand. He could barely put any weight on his left leg. He would have to make it work.

"I'll see you tomorrow Mr. Sato."

"Rin, take tomorrow off. You need to heal. If you want, I can remove Koda from the harvest. You don't have to be his personal punching bag."

"If I don't, he'll just pick on someone else weaker. I'll be back tomorrow."

Mr. Sato put a hand on Rin's shoulder. He was patting the place where Rin was hurt. It hurt but he didn't show the pain. "Rin, I'm ordering you to take tomorrow off. The harvest will still be here in two days. You need to rest. You are no good to me like this."

"Yes sir."

Rin hobbled away from the field and towards his home. What would his mother think of his recent injuries? She worried about him so much. She always worried about him because he was small for his age. Rin's father would tell him that he needed to toughen up.

As Rin walked into town, he found himself gazing up at that stars again. They provided the only source of light on Keket. The sun was only slightly brighter than the other stars in the sky. He wondered what Keket would be like if they were closer to the sun. How much brighter would it be on the planet? Probably too bright for the Yokios. They had adapted to the darkness and so had the rest of the planet. He doubted that anything would grow. That much sunlight might cause harm to the plants. Unless they plants could somehow get energy from the light. Energy from light. How strange. Everyone knew that plants got all their energy from the ground.

The house that Rin lived in with his parents was on the far end of town. It was similar to the other houses around it. It was small and made from stone. The size of the house meant that they did not have a high standing in the town but the stone meant that they were a strong and loyal family. It had a single room on the ground floor with the bedrooms being upstairs in a loft. Rin could hear his parents inside. He waited outside for a few minutes before gaining the courage to enter.

Inside, Rin's mother was busy preparing supper while his father was at his workbench working on a piece of furniture. Both of them had their back to him so if he was quiet, maybe they wouldn't notice him or his injuries.

"What took you so long, son?" his father asked him without turning around.

"Uh, Mr. Sato asked me to stay behind and clean up," Rin lied, "I'm really tired so I think that I'll just go to bed now."

He was almost to the stairs when his mother turned around. "Rin, what happened to you? Don't tell me that you got into another fight."

"No, a fight would mean that the two parties agreed to fight. And that both sides had an equal chance of winning."

"Rin," his mother said in a stern voice. He could see that she was worried about him. She was trying to be stern with him but her eyes were giving her away. "Was it Koda again?"

"Uh…"

"It was, wasn't it? I should have a talk with Mr. Sato. He can't allow Koda to pick on you like that. Maybe he can change the shifts around so that you don't have to work with him."

"Nonsense," his father said, "If Rin wants Koda to stop bullying him, he has to beat Koda himself. It won't stop until he does that."

"Yeah that would work great if there weren't three other guys backing him up," Rin replied, "That's hardly a fair fight."

"Life's not fair. But you have to find a way to overcome this. Life will always put you in unfair situations. You just need to learn how to overcome these situations," his father advised, "It won't do you any good if we but in."

His father had a point. He had to deal with Koda himself. Though perhaps fighting him would not be the best method. There had to be another way.

Rin's father cleaned him up while his mother finished preparing supper. Nothing more was said about the fight that night.

The family went to bed shortly after supper. Rin snuck out the window and climbed onto the roof. The slant of the roof gave the perfect view for star gazing. He liked to go out there when he wanted to think. It was quiet and no one could see him up there. Rin felt like he had been going up there more since his older brother, Reggie had moved out.

Reggie was three years older than Rin and had gotten married almost a year ago. Reggie was the only person who really supported Rin. He was only living a few streets over but Rin missed having his older brother around. Reggie stood up for him and protected him whenever Koda was picking on him. He couldn't rely on Reggie to help him now so he would have to find a way to beat Koda by himself.

How could he possibly beat Koda and his gang? Maybe he could beat him at something other than fighting. Something like what? It was tradition of his people to settle disputes with fighting. Rin couldn't fight to save his life. He was fast and was agile in the trees. Maybe he could lour Koda into the woods where he would have an advantage. But then Koda would be at a disadvantage. That wouldn't be fair to him.

Rin studied the dark red markings on his left arm. All Yokios have different red markings on their bodies and faces. They were called catos and they were supposed to signify the type of person that they will become and what type of life they will have. Rin stared at the catos as if they held the answer to his problems.

Rin had a series of intricately woven lines that varied in width and had sharp points at the ends. It started on his left hand and went up his arm, covered his shoulder, a small part of his back and covered the left side of his chest. The catos went down his side to the top of his leg. According to the village elder, it was supposed to signify that he will become a great warrior. It meant that he would become someone who was honest and fought for what was right. The catos on his face were less elaborate. He had three thin lines on his forehead and cheeks. They were supposed to mean that he will suffer great loss.

Rin never put much thought into these superstitions. How could the markings that a person is born with determine what their life will be like? How could he ever become a great warrior? Nothing about him was warrior material. Maybe by defeating Koda he will become a great warrior. Doubtful. He once heard that Koda's cato said that he is a protector. Were they ever wrong? He just hoped that the part about him suffering great loss wouldn't come true.

He was about to go in for the night when Rin thought he saw something in the sky. Something had appeared in the sky. Rin had never seen anything like it. It had a strange shape to it that Rin had never seen before. As Rin studied the new object in the sky five more objects that were identical to the first appeared in the night sky. What were these things? They just appeared out of nowhere.

Whatever these things were, they were getting closer. The objects spread out and seemed to be making some kind of formation in the sky. One of the objects turned sideways and Rin could see the full shape of the object. The front and back were a pointed, roundish structure while the middle had what looking like wings.

Rin was interested in these objects. The objects started to release thousands of smaller things. Rin's fascination quickly turned to dread. Something was wrong. They were being attacked by these objects.


	2. Chapter 2: The invasion

Chapter 2: The invasion

"Mother! Father!" Rin yelled as he raced back into the house, "Get up! We're under attack."

"What are you blabbering about," his father groaned.

"We're under attack! These things from the sky are attacking us!"

"Things from the sky," his father chuckled, "Rin, I think that you were just having a bad dream."

"It's not a dream!" Rin insisted. Why wouldn't they believe him?

Outside the window, Rin could see that the space objects were getting closer. Many of them had bright lights at the front which hurt Rin's eyes. The lights shone in the window and the whirl of the objects was getting louder.

"What is going on out there," Rin's mother asked sleepily.

His father finally looked out the window. His face paled and his jaw went slack. "Miko, we need to leave. Now."

Rin's parents quickly pulled on their shoes and coats and hurried outside. Other families were already in the street trying to see what was going on. The objects were landing around the town, completely surrounding it. These were different from the large ones in the sky. They were long and flat. Each one was three times as wide as a road and as long as Mr. Sato gava tree fields.

"What's going on?" Rin's neighbours wondered, "What are those things?"

Rin decided that he should take a look. He wanted to see what was going on.

"Rin, where are you going?" his mother demanded.

"I'm going to see what is going on," he answered, "We need to see what were up against."

Rin rushed off down the road and his parents reluctantly followed. Others had a similar idea as he did because the roads got more crowded the closer he got. When Rin could no longer push through the crowd, he climbed to the rooves and went along from there.

Rin reached the edge of town. Light flooded from the objects and nearly blinded him. It took him several minutes for his eyes to adjust to the light. He had never seen anything so bright.

When his eyes finally adjusted, he was shocked at what he saw. There were thousands of them. They were lined up perfectly straight and stretched out around the edge of town. They were all the same. They had thin tan bodies with a pack on their back and a black thing in their hands. The faces were long with slits for eyes and mouth. There were no movements in the face. It was unsettling. None of the things were moving.

"What are those things?" Rin's father asked. Rin was surprised that his parents could keep up with him.

"They look like they are made from metal," his mother observed, "That's not possible."

"Not possible for us. But possible for them."

"It's the chief," Rin announced pointing towards the front of the crowd.

The town's chief made his way through the crowd and approached the metal men.

"Who are you?" the chief demanded, "What do you want?"

None of the metal men answered.

"Will any of you speak to me?"

Still no one answered. There was movement from the craft behind the metal men. Another metal man appeared from inside the craft. This one was different than the others. It was larger and was dark grey. The head was flat with larger eyes and unmoving mouth. The body was also thicker though the arms and legs were still thin.

"Are you the one in charge," the chief asked the new arrival.

"I am TV-137," the metal man said in a male voice. It spoke strangely. The words were clipped. As it spoke, its mouth lit up. "I am here to claim this planet and all residents for the Confederacy of Independent Systems. If you cooperate, no harm shall come to your people. Should you resist, then you will be forced to submit."

"I don't know what you are or where you come from, outsider. I know not of your Confederacy of Independent Systems or what they want to us. But know this; my people will not go quietly. We answer to no outsider. You can take your army and leave because you are not welcome here," the chief announced.

Rin couldn't believe what he was hearing. Did the chief not see that the town was surrounded? He might be confident in their people's ability to defend themselves but Rin wasn't.

"So you are not going to cooperate. That is a pity," the man said, "I encourage you to rethink your decision. Are you willing to risk your people's lives?"

"Are you willing to risk your men's lives?" the chief countered.

"If I lose a few battle droids, I can always get more. Can you do that with your people? I understand that organic organisms cannot be manufactured as quickly as droids."

What was a droid? Was that what those metal men were?

"We will stay strong," the chief said, "You will never take us."

"As you wish." TV-137 walked back to his craft. "Begin the invasion."

"Roger, roger," the thousands of smaller beings squeaked in unison.

The droids raised the black things in their hands and began to advance. The chief waved his hands and caused a dozen or more droids to hover in the air. He closed his hands and the droids were crushed. Sparks flew from their bodies as they fell to the ground.

The droids started to attack the town. Streaks of red light came from the black things in their hands. The lights left scorch marks on the buildings that they hit. Those who were hit by these lights were struck down.

The Yokios were picking up anything they could use to defend themselves and attacked back. Many of them could push back the droids which took several droids with them. The stronger and more experienced Yokios were able to shoot lightening at the attackers. No matter how much the Yokios threw at the droids, more continued to come.

Rin was shocked at what he was seeing. This had to be a dream. There was no way that this was happening. His home was under attack by metal men from outer space. This couldn't be real.

"Rin, you need to get out of here!" his mother insisted.

"What? No."

"Rin, don't argue with your mother. Get out of here. Get to safety."

"But I can help."

"You can help by staying safe," Rin's mother kissed him on the forehead, "Now go! You're father and I will find you when we can."

Tears started to swell in Rin's eyes. This could be the last time he would see his parents. He embraced both of them before running away. He climbed over several rooftops before he looked back. Smoke and flames filled the air. His parents were already gone. He ran towards the centre of town with tears streaming down his face. He tried to stop the tears but they kept coming. He stopped when the sounds of battle were off in the distance. He jumped down into an alley were he tried to compose himself.

This was real. They were really being invaded by creatures from space. In all his years of dreaming about other life, never had he imagined it would turn out like this. There had to be something that he could do. But what could do he do? Rin couldn't fight. What could he do against these beings?

A craft flew overhead. It dropped several things that crashed through the houses. One landed a few houses from him. Rin climbed back to the roof to get a better view. The house was completely destroyed. Dust rose from the ruined house. Two droids emerged from the rubble of the house. They were trying to surround them. Make them fight on two sides

Rin creeped closer to get a better look. As he moved a pebble came loose and rolled down the roof. The droids looked up. They had spotted him.

"There's one up there!" one droid squeaked.

"Get him!" the other squeaked.

They fired upon him. Rin jumped to the other side of the roof. The red lights blasted through the roof. Rin was sprayed with pieces of wood and tile. They shot at him relentlessly. There was no way that Rin could move without getting hit.

"What the? Ahhh!" The droids squeaked.

Rin heard the sound of metal crumpling. The shots stopped so Rin poked his head over the peak of the roof.

"Koda? What are you doing?"

Koda and his gang were on the road next to the compacted droids. He had several smaller children with him. Many of them were still in their night clothes.

"Quit staring and get down here, runt," he hissed, "We need to get going."

Rin slid down the roof and landed next to Koda. "Going where?"

"We're going to the great hall. We have to keep these kids safe."

The great hall in the centre of town seemed like a good place to hide. It was the strongest building in town. The town would often converge in there if there was a bad storm. Despite the logic behind going to the great hall, Rin had a feeling like it was a bad idea. He couldn't put his finger on it, but he didn't think that going to the great hall was the best move.

"I don't think that we should go there," Rin said.

"What? It's the safest building in town. Our job is to protect these kids. What better place to do it than there?"

"I know. But I don't think that we should go there."

Rin could see that Koda was getting frustrated with him. "And where exactly do you purpose that we take them?"

Rin hadn't thought of that. He quickly thought of all the places that they could go that would provide them protection and give them an edge over the invaders.

"Exactly you don't know where to take them," Koda snapped, "The chief told us to take the kids to the great hall and that's what we're doing. So you can either come along or wait here for more of those things to show up."

Rin admitted defeat and decided to follow Koda.

He was surprised how kind Koda was towards the children. He tried to reassure them that it would be alright and kept them calm. He had one child in his arms with another holding his tail. It was a common thing for a child to hold onto the tail of their parent to avoid getting lost and for protection. From all the times that Koda had beat him up, Rin never considered him to be much of a protector. The role suits him.

"We're in the clear," one of Koda's friends who had scouted ahead called to them.

The group rounded the corner to see that the great hall was still alright. It was a tall building made of stone. It was a strong building with very few ornaments. It was made to provide shelter from storms not be pretty. If they got in there they should be safe.

"Get down!" someone yelled.

Rin and everyone got low to ground. Another craft flew overhead. There was a slight whistle and then a large explosion. The light was blinding and the sound was deafening. Dust and rubble were thrown everywhere as the great hall was consumed in flames. Rin used his body to shelter two younger kids nearby.

His ears were ringing and his vision was blurry. Smoke burned his nostrils as he gasped for breath. Rin's vision slowly cleared only to be burned by the blinding light of the fire.

The great hall was gone. If they had gotten their a little sooner, they would all be dead. Rin's hunch was right and that argument that he had with Koda probably saved everyone's life.

Rin was pulled to his feet by the collar. Someone was yelling at him but he could not hear what they were saying. A child was handed to him. The child was crying but Rin couldn't do anything to calm them. He found himself running. Others were running alongside him. They ran down a side street and kept running.

After what had felt like an hour, they had finally stopped running. The adrenaline was wearing off and Rin was tired. His hearing was returning though his ears were still ringing. The little boy in Rin's arms was still crying so he worked at calming him down.

They were hiding under the canopy of a small fruit stand. It didn't look like anyone was seriously hurt. There were a few scrapes from the debris but nothing major. Everyone was covered in dust and looked tired.

"What do we do now?" Koda's friend, Pita, asked, "The great hall is destroyed and the town is surrounded. Where can we go?"

"I don't know," answered Koda quietly.

"Well we can't just stay here," another friend of Koda, Hano said, "If those things find us, we're goners."

"We could head to the woods," Rin suggested.

"Uh, did you not hear the part that the town is surrounded?" Pita said, "We'll never be able to get out of town in one piece."

"Yeah Rin, if it was just us, we _might_ be able to get out," Hano added, "But we can't get out and protect these kids at the same time. Most of them don't even know how to channel their spirit energy."

"We could fight them," suggested a younger boy that Rin did not recognise.

"Yeah, we took down the two things earlier," someone else added.

"There were only two," Koda said quietly, "We would not be able to go up against the thousands that are out there."

"But-"

"No. It wouldn't work," Koda snapped, "Our parents are struggling against those things and they are a lot more powerful than we are. Rin, Pita and I are probably the strongest ones here and we would not be able to fight those things while protecting all of you. Our best option is to find somewhere safe."

"Did you just give me a compliment?" Rin asked in disbelief.

"Yeah, don't get used to it."

"Hey, I thought I heard something over there," a droid squeaked in the distance.

"Let's check it out," another said.

They sounded close. Rin guessed that they were only at the end of the road. The group looked for a place to hide but there was none. There was the fruit stand and that was it. It would shield them from the end of the road but if the droids walked by the stand they would be spotted.

Two droids appeared at the far end of the road. They slowly walked down the road towards them.

Everyone was as still and quiet as they could be. A child nearby started to whimper. Rin put a hand over the child's mouth. He hoped that the droids didn't hear the child. His heart was pounding. It sounded so loud to him the Rin thought for sure that the droids could hear it too. Rin looked at Koda who looked like he was getting ready to fight these things.

The droids reached the fruit stand. One looked over the cart at them. Rin could have sworn that the droid was looking right at him. They were done for.

"See anything?" the droid checking the other side of the street asked.

"No."

"Alright. Let's move on."

The droids continued down the street and turned down the next one. As they went down the street one of them tripped over a stick in the street.

"Watch were you're going."

"Sorry. It's hard to see here. It's so dark."

Rin couldn't believe it. That droid had looked right at him but it didn't see them. How?

"What just happened?" Hano asked, "They didn't even see us. How could they not see us? It looked right at us."

"Those things can see in the dark," Koda concluded, "How else could they not see that stick in the road?"

"How could they not see in the dark?" Pita asked.

"Because they come from a world that is brighter than ours. They must be used to bright light," Rin said.

"That still doesn't explain how they couldn't see us," a little girl said.

"We must blend into the dark," Koda said, "Our skin is so dark grey that it is almost black. As long as we're not in the light, we may as well be invisible to them."

"Then why did they spot me earlier?"

Koda shrugged. "You made noise."

"We might be able to make it to the woods after all," Rin said, "If we are quiet enough, we might be able to sneak through their lines."

"But why do you want to go to the woods?" Hano asked.

"The woods will provide us with shelter. I can hazard a guess that these things are not suited for rough terrain," Rin explained, "They may have an advantage in town, but no one can beat us in the trees. According to history, our ancestors used to live in the trees before they were able to build buildings. This will work."

"How did you come up with this plan?" Koda asked.

"It was part of the plan I had to beat you."

"Alright then. Let's get going."

The group of them headed for the woods on the east side of town. Those woods were the thickest as well as the closest to town. They quietly maneuvered the streets and were careful not to run into any more droids. The plan proved to be more difficult when they reached the edge of town.

There was another craft with hundreds of battle droids patrolling the area. They were not near the real action and were probably making sure that no one left town. The area was brightly lit and had a spotlight that was moving back and forth along the town walls. There was no way that they could all make it unseen.

"Well so much for that plan," Pita said after they had hidden from the lights, "We can't get past that."

"Yes we will," Rin insisted, "We just have to think of a way."

"Rin, it was a good idea, but I don't see how we are getting though there," Koda said, "There is just no way that we all can get past them. It's too bright."

The group continued to chatter about what they were going to do next. Rin drifted off in thought as he watched the light pass back and forth across the walls. There was a pattern to the movement. There was a five second gap that the road was not covered in light. It wouldn't be enough time to send everyone out. There wouldn't even be enough time for one person to make it all the way to the woods. But it would be enough time for one person to reach where the lights were stationed. There was a small section where the stationary lights didn't meet that someone could make their way to the lights.

"I have an idea!" Rin announced. He explained his thought to the group. They did not look overly impressed with his idea.

"So one person can make his way to where the lights are coming from. So what? What good does that do us?" Hano asked.

"Once they are there, they will be able to turn the lights off."

"Do you even know how to shut off those lights?" Koda asked him.

Rin shrugged. "Well, no. But how hard could it be?"

"Whoever goes will have to be fast. And be small enough to fit in that space."

"I know. That's why I'm going," Rin said.

"Are you crazy?" Koda demanded, "You wouldn't last a moment out there. I should go."

"No. Like you said it has to be small and fast. I am the fastest one here and I should be able to fit in that gap. They will never see me coming."

"Alright. Go. But make sure that you come back in one piece. I will still need someone to pick on once this is through."

Rin nodded.

He set himself up to make the run. He watched the light make several more passes. It was going to be tight.

Rin waited for the light to make its third pass before taking off. He leaped to the gap in the light and ran as fast as he could. The light was coming back around. He wasn't even half way there yet. Rin quickened his pace. His legs were starting to tire and his knee started to ach from that afternoon. He had to keep running. Only a little more left to go. The light was almost to him. Rin slid to safety just as the light passed over his head. That was close. It didn't look like he had been spotted.

Before Rin could stand, two droids came out from behind the base of the light. He froze in his spot. He didn't dare move in case they heard him. He didn't even breathe.

"Did you hear something?" he heard a droid ask.

"Probably just the wind."

The droids walked past Rin and behind the other light. When they were gone he finally allowed himself to breathe. They didn't see him.

Rin got up and went over to the light beside him. It was large, about the size of a one story building. Behind the light there was a panel with a screen and buttons. It looked like the controls for the light. But how was he supposed to turn it off? There was a picture of a light on the screen. Rin tapped the picture and the light turned off.

"Hey! What was that?"

"Someone turned off the spotlight."

Rin crushed the controls before racing to the other stationary light. He did the same thing to that one and the moving light.

The droids were running around lost. They couldn't see where they were going. They were bumping into each other and tripping over their own feet. It was a comical sight until one of the droids started to shoot the red lights. One of the lights nearly hit Rin. With a wave of his hand, he crushed the droid.

Koda and the others were already at the tree line. Rin raced after them. None of the droids followed them. They were home free.


	3. Chapter 3: The Republic

Chapter 3: The Republic

Koda, Rin and the other children had been in the woods for five days. They were living off the food and water that they could find in the woods. None of them dared to venture outside the cover of the woods in fear of being caught by the droids.

During that time other children had joined them who also managed to escape town. Some of them had been hurt from the droids or just trying to escape. There was girl that had twisted her ankle when she was running from the droids. There was also a boy who had been grazed on the arm with the red lights. The wound was like nothing that any of them had ever seen before. The wound had cauterized itself and there was little to no blood.

It was frustrating to wait for something. It was boring in the woods. They didn't risk playing or making too much noise because they might be heard. The children were too scared to play anything anyway. They were on constant watch for the droids. At any time they could attack them. It was exhausting looking after the kids. They were scared but at the same time so was Rin. He couldn't let his fear show because that would worry the kids.

They had also heard nothing about their parents. No one knew if they were winning or losing. With the destruction of the great hall, their parents may even think that they were dead. Rin knew that his parents and brother were still alive. He could feel that they were still in the world of the living. It worried him not knowing how they were doing or what they were doing. Were they safe? Had they been captured? Were they still fighting? But at least they were still alive.

The older kids had been keeping watch in shifts over the younger ones. They kept watch in pairs so that they were able to get some sleep. Not that many of them got much sleep over the several days they were in the woods. With the other groups that had come in, there were eight teenagers to keep watch.

On the fifth night, Rin was on watch with Pita. Everyone was asleep in the shelter they had made while the two of them watched from the trees. In the distance they could hear explosions. They could hear them for the past couple nights but they didn't seem to be advancing.

"Rin, can I ask you something?" Pita asked.

Rin shrugged. "Yeah, sure."

"Do you think that we are going to get through this? That maybe someday we will be able to go back home?"

"I don't know. I'm not sure that we will have much to go back to."

"I'm scared," Pita admitted.

"Me too. What's that?"

"What's what?

Rin pointed up at the sky. Three more crafts had appeared in the sky. These were different than the others in the sky. They were much larger and triangular.

"What's that? Are they bringing reinforcements?"

Whoever they were, they were not reinforcements for the invaders. The large triangle released several smaller crafts. It also started to fire upon the invaders ships. Flashes of red and blue lights streaked across the sky and the crafts engaged each other. Within minutes one of the invaders ships was destroyed.

"I think, I think that they might be trying to help us," Rin observed.

"Or their just fighting to see who gets to conquer us."

"Surely not every outsider wants to conquer us. It could be possible that they are trying to free us from them."

"Great," Pita groaned, "So they brought a war to us. That's great."

"Did you hear something?" Rin asked.

Rin could hear something approaching in the distance. He could hear metal groaning and trees splintering. Whatever it was sounded like it was ploughing through the trees.

Pita's face paled as he heard what was coming.

"We need to get going, now!"

Pita and Rin leapt from the trees and landed by the shelter. There were already some children waking from the approaching threat. They got everyone up and moving in under a minute. Many of them were not fully awake. When they left their shelter the ground was beginning to shake.

Rin had a little girl in his arms as they started running. The noise kept getting closer. Rin sped up but it didn't seem to make a difference They would not be able to outrun it. Rin continued running. He dodged around trees and leaped over stumps and rocks. A boy in front of him tripped and fell. Rin grabbed the boy's collar and pulled him to his feet. Behind him, Rin could hear each tree breaking and crashing down. They were almost on top of them.

Three crafts flew overhead. They flew ahead of them and dropped something. The forest ahead of them erupted into flames. Rin skidded to a stop just before the fire. It was a solid wall of flames. There was no way through. They were trapped.

Two large metal objects crashed through the lines of trees behind them. The things had a single large cannon mounted on the front with a droid riding along on the top of it. Despite the size of these things, they appeared to hover above the ground.

Several droids appeared from the woods. A few more strange looking ones joined them. Large grey droids were behind the tan coloured ones and three red things rolled in and had a blue aura around them.

"Tell the commander that we have found the children," one of the droids on the large vehicles squeaked.

Rin was franticly looking for a way out. There was no way out. They were surrounded. The fire produced enough light that they could be seen. They couldn't go through the fire. It looked like the only option was to go through the droids. But how could they do that?

"Surrender children," another droid on the large vehicles squeaked, "There is nowhere to go."

"How do we know that if we do that you won't kill us?" Koda demanded.

"We have orders to bring in the children. You will not be harmed," squeaked the droid.

"What do you want with us?" Rin asked, "Why spare us when you attack our parents?"

"You will see when you reach our ship."

"You're not taking these kids!" Koda yelled, "You aren't taking us anywhere."

"We will see."

"No. I mean that you are _not_ taking these kids!" Koda shouted. He gave a push and shoved several of the small droids back and into one of the big vehicles.

Rin could not believe what Koda just did. Did he seriously think that they could take on all these droids?

The droids open fire on them. The older kids started to fight the droids. Rin did his best to gather the younger ones and get them to hide. The young ones were crying and panicking. He gathered them up in the chaos and hid them behind a large rock.

"Freeze," a droid squeaked from behind him as he tucked the last child behind the rock.

Rin did a backflip over the droid. As he did he grabbed the droid's weapon with his tail. The droid was confused. Rin took this opportunity to crush the droid.

The scene behind him was a disaster. They were outnumbered and the droids had advanced weapons. Rin could see some of his friends had already been beaten and were lying motionless on the ground. Koda and a girl that they had met in the woods were the only ones left standing.

"Stay here!" he ordered the kids.

Rin raced to help Koda. He was able to knock over several droids as he raced in. He leapt over one that was in his way. He wrapped his tail around the neck of the droid. Rin pulled the droid to the ground. He spun quickly and used the droid to take out several more.

"What are you doing?" Koda yelled when Rin reached him.

"Saving you. What does it look like?"

The cannon on one of the large vehicles moved to point at Rin and Koda.

"Yeah, how's that working for you?"

Rin saw the girl go down. They were now on their own. The droids surrounded them. The save was not going as well as Rin had imagined.

There was a flash of light from above and the vehicle that was pointed at Rin and Koda exploded. Around a dozen different crafts descended from the sky. There were block like with large openings on the sides. Rin could see people in white armour inside. They also had motionless faces. Could it be more droids?

"Clones!" a droid squealed.

The droids opened fire on the newcomers. They returned the fire. Rin and Koda were forgotten in the chaos. They pushed the droids away from them and ran for cover.

Some of the crafts landed and the men in white rushed out. They shot at the droids and started taking them out. They tossed explosives at them and one launched some kind of rocket that hit another vehicle and destroyed it.

Among the men in white, there was one that was different. There was a woman in there that was not in armour. She had flowing sandy hair and pale skin. She had a dark blue dress on with long sleeves that came to mid-thigh and had a black belt. Here boots were long and went above were knees where there were dark leggings. This woman also had a different weapon then the men in white. They had weapons similar to the droids while she had a sword made of blue light. Rin had never seen anyone like her. She moved gracefully through the battle slashing through the droids.

When the last droids was beaten, the men stopped their shooting. Rin was finally able to take a good look at the men. Some of them had green paint on their armour. It must be a way to identify each other. Their faces scared him but for some reason, Rin felt like he could trust them. He had a feeling that they were the good guys who were trying to help them.

"General," a man with a green handprint on his face said as he approached the woman, "The site is secure."

"Good job, Captain Trapper," she responded, "Get the medic down here to take care of these children. Any sign of the others."

"Not yet."

"Alright. Will someone put out this fire?"

Rin tried to stand but Koda grabbed his arm and pulled him back down.

"What are you doing? Are you trying to get caught?"

"I think it's safe," Rin whispered, "They just saved us, I think that we can trust them."

"How do we know that they aren't just going to give us a worse fate?"

"We don't. But trust me. I think that they are here to help."

Rin went to stand again but Koda pulled him back down. "I am not having you jeopardize yourself for this."

"Well, if I'm right, then we have nothing to worry about. And if I'm wrong…let's not think about that."

Rin got up and walked into the open. Many of the men didn't see him as he walked into the open. Finally one who had lights attached to his head spotted Rin.

"Stop right there!" he ordered, "Identify yourself."

Rin thought that he had misheard, but he thought that the one giving the orders sounded exactly like Captain Trapper.

Rin froze as several eyes focused on him. The General walked through the crowd to the front. She walked towards Rin but still kept her distance. She was shorter than Rin expected. He was taller than her by several inches. She was also young. General sounded like an impressive rank but she might have only been thirty.

"What's your name?" she asked with a kind voice.

"My name's Rin Slovak. I-I live here. Well, I-I don't live here. I live in town," Rin stammered. It was hard to talk with his heart pounding against his ribcage. "W-who are you?"

"My name is Aurora Snow."

"W-why are you here?"

She smiled. She looked kind. "We're here to help. We heard that your planet was being invaded by the Separatists. They have been invading and enslaving systems across the galaxy and we didn't want the same to happen to yours."

Across the galaxy. They had the ability to travel across the galaxy. A week ago Rin would have been at awe with wonder. He was at the moment too tired and too scared to think about far away planets.

"Why would they want our planet?"

"We don't know," she admitted, "Not much is known about your planet. The last contact was made hundreds of years ago and before that little information could be gathered."

Rin saw one of the men approach Hano who was unconscious on the ground.

"Don't touch him!" Rin yelled.

"Rin, we don't want to hurt your friends. We are trying to give him medical attention," General Snow assured him.

"Is he alright."

General Snow looked over at the man attending to Hano.

"He's alright," the man said. He also sounded the same as the other men. "The boy is just stunned. He should wake up in a few hours and be perfectly fine."

"Do you believe me that we want to help?" General Snow asked.

Rin nodded slowly. "Koda, I think it's safe," he called out.

It took a minute or so before Koda came out. Once he did the younger kids did as well. They were all frightened. Their eyes kept darting from Rin to the men and then back to Rin.

"Captain Trapper, have your men get some food, water and blankets for the children," General Snow ordered.

One of the men knelt down for the children. A little girl screamed and ran behind Rin. The man must have concluded that their appearance was frightening because he removed his helmet. Underneath the helmet was just a man though he looked strange. His skin was tan and had brown eyes and brown hair that was cut close to his head. Despite the strange colourings his facial features were similar to Yokios.

"You see, I'm just a man. We're all just men. We won't hurt you," he assured the child, "They call me B.J. What do they call you?"

"Bea," the girl squeaked.

"Well Bea, I bet that you are hungry and tired. Would you like something to eat?"

Bea nodded then slowly went with B.J. More of the men removed their helmets as well. Rin was shocked when he saw that all of the men looked exactly the same. There was some variation in hair style, facial hair and catos but other than that, that all looked the same. They had the same eyes and same face.

"Excuse me," Rin said, "If you don't mind me asking, why do you all look the same?"

"That's because we're clones," Captain Trapper answered. That didn't answer Rin's question. "Uh, we're essentially genetic copies of each other. But that doesn't really explain it to you that well does it?"

"Not really."

"Come, let's get you cleaned up and fed," General Snow said.

Captain Trapper took the children to get food and the injured went with the medics. Rin was glad to finally have decent food. They were able to find enough food to get by in the woods but Rin found that he was always hungry. He ate the food and so did all the children. They were sitting inside what the clones called a Gun Ship. The lights were bright inside so Rin and the other children were sitting closer to the outside where the lights weren't as strong.

"So how long have you been out in the woods," Captain Trapper asked when they were eating. He had also taken off his helmet. He had a short Mohawk and had a goatee.

"Five days," Rin answered between bites. He seemed to be the only one willing to talk to the clones.

"Five days? That's a long time to be out on your own. How do you even tell how many days it has been with it so dark here?"

"By the stars," Rin answered, "As the day goes on the position of the stars move. We know that a day has gone by when the position of the stars are where they were the day before."

Rin and Captain Trapper had been taking turns asking questions. Now that Rin was getting comfortable around the clones, he wanted to know everything he could about the world they came from. He had learned a bit about the war that was going on the galaxy and about the battle droids. He saw a hologram and learned what a blaster was and how it worked.

"My turn for a question. You and your men are clones. Then what is General Snow? Why is she different from you?"

"General Snow is a Jedi. A Jedi is…how do I explain what a Jedi is? You ask the good questions," Captain Trapper thought about it before calling out to another clone, "Hey Hogan, how do you explain what a Jedi does?"

"Well, they used to be a peacekeeping organization before the war. They consist of races from all over the galaxy. They are quite remarkable in the things that they can do. They can use the Force." Hogan explained.

"What's the Force?"

"I have no idea."

Just then General Snow appeared in the doorway of the Gun Ship.

"How is everyone doing?" she asked.

"Good." Rin answered. The other children just nodded. Some of them had their mouths full with food while others were still afraid to talk.

"Good. Rin, might I have a word with you?"

"Uh, yeah, sure." Rin put down his food and followed her.

"How are you holding up?" she asked once they were far enough away that they couldn't be overheard.

"Uh, I'm not sure really," Rin answered, "All this is a bit much to take in. Five days ago I was harvesting gava fruits and worrying about a bully. Now the bully is my friend and we have been on the run for our lives. It's hard to believe that it was only five days ago. So much has happened. My whole world has been permanently turned upside down. I guess that I am doing as well as anyone else."

"You seem to be handling all this quite well all things considered. You are doing much better than the others."

"Thank you General Snow."

She smiled. "Call me Aurora. I never liked the title of General. Jedi are supposed to be peacekeepers not military leaders. There are some days that I don't feel that we are very good at either one of those positions."

It was strange how comfortable he felt around Aurora. She had a comforting presence, sort of like a mother. She looked young but seemed to be much older because of the war. When she talked about it she was sad. It had taken its toll on her.

"How do you deal with all this?" Rin asked, "How do you deal with the war and destruction?"

"When I figure that out, I'll let you know. I try not to think about it too much. Sometimes I try to convince myself that I am saving lives. I like to think that I am helping those less fortunate than myself. I don't know if any of those are true, but it helps," she paused, "I am so sorry that your people were brought into this mess. You were living peacefully with no idea of what was going on in the galaxy. I guess ignorance truly is bliss."

"Maybe. But it might not be a bad thing that we're involved," Rin said, "I have always wondered if there was life on other planets. I've dreamed of what they could show us and what we could learn from each other. We were so caught up in our little world that we never bothered to consider what was happening in the universe."

Aurora smiled. "I take it that your views were not overly popular."

"No. Most of them don't want to think of a world that is bigger than their own."

"I believe that most people are like that, no matter where you go. There are thousands of worlds that are aware of the war but very few do much about it," she sighed, "There is something that I would like your help on."

She led him to where the destroyed droids were. Many of them had blaster marks on them with a few having burnt slashes.

"I was hoping that you could help me try and piece together why the Separatists are so interested in your people. I was wondering if you could help me with a few questions I've been having about what was happening before we arrived," she explained.

"Sure. What do you want to know?"

She stopped beside a droid that had been crushed. "I came across many droids that had been crushed like this. Did you children do this?"

"Yeah, I guess."

"How were you able to do this?"

"Well, I don't really know how to explain it. We call it spirit energy."

"And with it you were able to crush the droid?"

"Yeah." Rin levitated a nearby rock to show her. He didn't crush it but threw it into the woods instead.

General Snow's eyes grew wide. It looked like something was clicking in her head. "Can all your people do it or is it just a few?"

"No. Everyone can do it. Well the younger kids don't know how to do it yet but they will learn in a couple years. I'm guessing that based on your expression that this isn't common in the rest of the galaxy."

"No, it's not," she answered, "But I think I know why the Separatists were after you."

She turned and rushed off. Rin followed her. He wanted to know what she had discovered.

"Wait!" he called out after her, "Why are they after us? What did you figure out?"

Aurora stopped when she reached the closest Gun Ship. "I believe that the Separatists are after your people because of their connection with the Force, what you call spirit energy. They have already tried this once by abducting Force sensitive children across the galaxy."

"But why would they do that?"

"Separatists are allied with the Sith. They are the opposite of the Jedi in almost every way. A Jedi uses the Force to help those in need while the Sith use the Dark Side of the Force to cause pain and destruction," Aurora explained, "They want to use your people as weapons that they can use against the Republic and the Jedi. I'm sorry that I can't explain it better but I have to report this to the Jedi Council."


	4. Chapter 4: Reunion

Chapter 4: Reunion

They were under heavy fire. The battle droids were relentless in their battle. No matter how many of them were knocked down, crushed or destroyed, more kept coming. The battle droids were supported by spider droids and their blasts were causing serious damage. With one blast, a spider droid took out four Yokios and part of a building.

The battle had moved from the outskirts and they were now fighting in town. Barely anyone had had any sleep in five days. For a while it had seemed like they were winning until the triangle ships had appeared in the sky. Ever since the new crafts had appeared in the sky, the droids seemed to have increased their attack. They were being hit harder than ever before.

Reggie dodged the blasters shots and ducked behind a piece of destroyed building to where his parents were. They were tending to the wounded that they could save. Like Reggie, they were tired, hungry, covered in dust, sweat and blood. They all had several cuts and bruises on them but nothing major so far.

It was amazing that they were still together. Reggie's wife Till, had lost her parents and younger brother. Reggie had lost track of her two days ago but he could feel that she was still alive. Rin was still alive as well. He hoped that his little brother was safe. He would never have been strong enough for this.

"We need to pull back!" Reggie yelled over the blasters, "We can't stay here!"

"Run to where?" his mother asked, "There is nowhere left to go. What are we to do about the wounded? We can't leave them here."

"And we can't risk being killed in the process. We're not any good to anyone if we're dead!" Reggie yelled.

He admired his parents for taking care of the injured the way they were. But lately they were putting their own lives at risk to help others. He would help someone if he could but not if he was needlessly putting his own life in danger. Did that make him selfish? He was no good to the living if he was killed.

"We will take who we can," his father said, "We can at least save some."

Reggie agreed with that. He picked up a woman who had taken a blaster bolt to the shoulder. He waited for a gap in the firing for him to make his move.

There was a small opening and Reggie took it. He sprinted away with the woman in his arms. He was able to get through but eventually had to take cover behind a piece of rubble. He looked back to hopefully see his parents coming but they were still where he had left them. They were waiting for an opening but there wasn't one.

Reggie forced a broken beam towards the droids to give his parents an opening to escape. He saw something at the droid that made his blood run cold. The spider droid was about to fire again. It was pointing at his parents.

"Run! Get out of there!" he yelled at the top of his lungs.

It didn't seem like his voice was working. They couldn't hear him. Time seemed to slow as he saw the droid fire. The bolt hit where his parents were. The stone exploded and covered his parents. His eyes met with his parents just before they were gone forever.

Rin awoke with a jolt. He didn't remember nodding off sitting up against the gun ship. He had gone back to the others while he was waiting to hear from Aurora. He didn't want to go inside so he had sat down outside the ship where he must have fallen asleep.

Was that a dream that he just had? It felt so real. That's because it was real. Rin could feel it. He could no longer feel their presence. His parents were dead. It was so quick.

Rin pulled his knees up to his chin. He suddenly felt very alone in the world. He sat there quietly for several minutes with tears streaming down his face. He tried to convince himself that it wasn't true. His parents couldn't really be dead. But they were. He could feel it. They were no longer in this world.

He was knocked out of his thoughts when the clone called B.J. came out from inside the gun ship and tripped over Rin.

"I'm sorry about that," the clone apologized, "I didn't see you there."

"It's alright. It wasn't your fault."

"What are you doing out here by yourself?" B.J. asked.

"I was waiting to talk to Aurora. I must have dozed off."

"You must have been pretty tired. She left with most of the troops several hours ago. A few of us remained to look after you kids."

Rin had been so caught up in his own thoughts that he didn't realize that all of the gunships except the one he was leaning against were gone. He must have been tired to not hear all of them leave.

"What was it that you wanted to talk to the General about?"

"I was wondering if she could tell me more about why the droids were after us. She had explained a little of it to me but she rushed off before she could tell me anymore," Rin explained.

"Well, I'm sure that she will explain it to you when she gets back."

"Where did she go anyway?"

"Scouts had picked up heavy fire in the town. She went to see if she could help out," B.J. told him, "Word is that it is the last area with droids left. Your people were able to clear most of the droids yourselves. That's impressive. Your people must be strong warriors."

"We're not warriors," Rin said, "We're mostly farmers. My father made furniture for a living. We're not warriors. We're just stubborn."

"Sounds like you had a good life before all this."

"I didn't think so at the time. But yeah, it was a good life. Life was simple. I wish that I could go back to the time where all I had to worry about was a bully, helping with the harvest and finding a job."

"Maybe one day it will go back to that," B.J. said.

"What will you do when you're done here?" Rin asked.

The clone shrugged. "We'll probably be assigned to help another world in danger. We could be sent on a reconnaissance mission, rescue mission or be providing security. It's hard to tell."

It seemed so strange to Rin that there were so many other worlds in need. He wondered how many worlds there were in the galaxy. How many of them were affected by the war. How many of them were being taken over like they had been. B.J. had said that the Yokios had been able to clear most of the droids on their own. But many people didn't have the natural abilities that the Yokios had so would not be able to effectively defend themselves.

Rin wished that there was something that he could do to help. But what could he do? He was one person in a large war. He could help those who were not as strong as he was. He could help one person at a time. He had already lost his parents because of these droids. Others were losing much more then he was. He didn't want anyone else to lose their parents like he had lost his.

There was a beeping sound from B.J. wrist. The clone pressed something and a voice crackled though a small device that was attached to his arm.

" _B.J. this is Trapper. We have secured the town and the droids are defeated. You can bring the children here_."

"Copy that," B.J. responded, "We will be there soon."

"How can you tell each other apart when you all sound alike?"

"You get used to it. C'mon, let's take you back to your parents."

Rin didn't bother telling the clone that he would not be seeing his parents. How many of the other children would not be seeing their parents as well? He went with B.J. and helped get the others rounded up to leave.

They were piled into the gun ship and took off. Most of the children were scared about flying but Rin wasn't. It was the strangest feeling as he felt the gun ship lift off. It almost felt like he was in the back of a wagon but the ride was smooth. There was a pressure that formed in his ears as they gained altitude. There were no windows in the gun ship so Rin had no idea where they were going or how high they were.

"I don't like this," Koda hissed in Rin's ear, "We could have found our parents ourselves without their help. If that's even where we're going."

"It will be fine," Rin assured him, "It would have taken us a day at least to get back to town on foot. We wouldn't be able to travel as well with those who are still stunned."

"Well I'm not as trusting as you are. They are outsiders. How do we know that we can trust them?"

"Have they given us any reason to suspect otherwise?"

"No good will come of this. I wouldn't stand too close to any of them when our parents find us. They will not be too happy about you becoming friends with these guys," Koda said, "You can't stand with them. It won't be allowed."

They were in the air for less than ten minutes when they had started to descend. The pressure was back in Rin's ears. They landed with a soft thud and the large side doors opened. Rin was shocked and horrified at what he saw.

The whole town was destroyed. There was nothing left except rubble. Fires still burned amongst the rubble. Smoke coiled into the air and was blocking out the stars. How could they ever rebuild from this?

Not far from them there were a group of adults, there were probably several hundred. They were arguing with the clones. Rin couldn't make out what they were saying but they had stopped their yelling once they saw their children. Many of the children ran to their parents and called out to them. Rin hung back. He knew that his parents were not going to greet him. It was a heart breaking scene when some of the younger children could not find their parents. They searched and called out but their parents were no longer there.

Rin felt bad when there was a parent that couldn't find their child. There were twenty seven children that were in their group. There were probably children hiding elsewhere but there were probably some that were killed. There could have been children in the great hall before it was destroyed. They tried to save as much as they could but they could not save all the children.

"So I take it that your parents were killed too?" Pita asked. He had hung back with Rin. Pita was trying to put on a brave face but there were tears building up in his eyes.

"Yeah, they died in the last attack?" Rin answered, "You?"

"They died the first night," Pita could no longer hold back his tears, "While we were running to safety they were fighting to protect us and were killed."

"Don't you have two older sisters? What about them?"

"I don't know. They were living in the next town. We were never close so I can't tell."

"I'm sure that they are alright."

"Isn't that your brother?" Pita asked pointing at the crowd.

Rin looked over and spotted his brother. He was covered in dirt and had dried blood down the side of his face but there was no missing him. Reggie had spotted him too because he called out to him. Rin didn't move nor acknowledge his brother. He didn't know why but he didn't want to be around Reggie at the moment.

"You should be with him," Pita said, "You still have some family. Be thankful."

Pita left to take care of a little girl who could not find her parents.

"Rin! Rin, I'm so glad that you are all right!" Reggie embraced Rin and almost smothered him.

Rin didn't hug his brother back but instead just stood there. For some reason his brother felt alien to him. He was no longer the strong brother that he had idolized growing up. He had changed. Rin's face was pressed into the shoulder of his brother and he didn't even smell like his brother. Reggie smelled of sweat, smoke and dust. He usually smelled of wood and varnish like their father.

The whole world around him seemed alien. It didn't seem real. Rin could feel hot tears on his face only they weren't his. Reggie was crying. Rin had never seen his brother cry. Reggie had always been the tough one while Rin was considered to be the cry baby.

"I never thought that I would see you again," Reggie cried, "Mother and Father…I…"

"I know. I'm glad to see you too."

"We do not require your assistance!" Rin heard the chief yell.

Rin pulled away from his brother to see what was going on. The chief was yelling at Aurora. She was keeping a calm face but the chief was furious.

"How dare you take our children from us! It is because of you that this town is destroyed!" the chief yelled.

"We did not take your children. We were bringing your children to you after we saved them from the battle droids," Aurora replied calmly, "Now with your permission, I would like to allow some of my men to stay here and help you rebuild as well as protect you from further invasion."

"Never. We do not require your help!"

"Please consider my offer. The Separatists will be back and with greater numbers. Let us help you."

"Why? We were doing fine until you showed up," the chief pointed to the sky, "That is yours in the sky is it not? We were doing fine until you showed up. You brought the metal men just so that you could swoop in and save us. You think that by doing that you will gain our trust? We will not be as easily won over as the other peoples you have encountered."

What the chief was saying was sparking whispers. The chief was playing off the fear that everyone had about Aurora and the clones. It made Rin mad that they would be so untrusting.

"Rin, what's wrong?" Reggie asked.

"This is wrong," Rin answered, "They aren't our enemies. They were trying to help us."

"Rin, we can't trust them," Reggie said, "They are outsiders. They only bring trouble. You weren't there. The chief is right. When they showed up it got harder for us. It's because of them that mother and father are dead."

"You're wrong."

Rin couldn't believe that his brother was siding with the chief. Was he so closed minded?

"You are nothing but parasites," the chief continued, "You feed of other worlds to give yourselves more power."

The crowd around the chief were starting to get jittery. They were siding with the chief and were getting ready to fight again. The clones noticed this too as many of them were reaching their blasters. Rin couldn't stand for this anymore. He had to stop it.

He sprinted away from his brother and stopped between Aurora and the chief.

"Stop this! Why can't you see that they are trying to help us?" he asked the chief, "They are not the bad guys! How can you be so closed minded to think that anyone who is not one of us could be bad?"

"Rin, what are you doing?" Aurora whispered to him.

"Get out of the way boy," the chief sneered, "You are too young to understand this. They are trying to take our world for themselves. We can't trust them."

"Why? Why can't we trust them?" Rin demanded, "Is it because they are different than us? Have they made any attempt to hurt us? Have they showed that they cannot be trusted? The fact that they are different than us is not a good enough reason to not trust them. Yes they look different, they could even be considered frightening looking, but they are not the monsters that we just got rid of."

"You have a lot of nerve boy. Siding with them. You're a traitor to your own kin."

Reggie walked up to Rin, grabbed his arm and tried to pull him back. "I apologize for my brother's outburst, sir. He is under stress from our parents passing and is just lashing out."

"No I'm not! I'm trying to tell the truth."

"Rin, stop making a scene," Reggie hissed.

"Young man, get your brother under control," the chief ordered, "I understand that you are going through hard times, as we are all. But that does not excuse his behaviour. I am letting him off easy. Get some sense into him because next time I will not be so generous."

"Yes sir."

Reggie grabbed Rin and dragged him back to the crowd. Rin struggled but Reggie was bigger and stronger then he was. Reggie dragged him past the crowd and down a ruined street. Once they were out of earshot and eyesight from the crowd he finally let go. Rin stumbled for a moment before punching his brother in the jaw.

"What's your deal?" Rin demanded, "Why are you being such a jerk?"

"What's my deal? I think I could ask that of you! What did you think you were doing challenging the chief like that? You know that he's right so why challenge him?"

"He's not right. They are good people. They helped us."

"They aren't people. They are outsiders."

"So just because they don't have red eyes or grey skin and come from another planet you think that they aren't people? Is that your ideas or are they the chief's?"

"Rin, do you know how lucky you were back there?" Reggie asked, "You were too young to remember this but there was once someone who questioned the chief the same way you did. He got some followers and tried to over throw the chief. He was banished. That almost happened to you."

"I wasn't trying to become chief. I was trying to stop the chief from spreading lies!" Rin yelled.

"That doesn't matter. You came really close to being banished. You aren't a little kid anymore. You have to be careful what you say. You need to grow up."

"Well if I have to hear more lies about the world then maybe I don't want to live here anymore!"

Reggie looked like he had just been slapped in the face. "What are you saying?"

Rin didn't really know what he was saying. It was just something that he had blurted out. Maybe he didn't want to live in town anymore. But where would he go? Maybe he didn't want to stay on Keket.

"I'm saying, maybe I don't want to stay here," Rin said slowly.

"Is this because our homes are destroyed or because of what the chief said?"

"No. Yes. I don't know. A combination of," Rin took a minute to think, "Reggie, I've never known what I'm going to do with my life. You have always known. You have a wife and a job that you can go back to. I have nothing. Mother and Father are gone; I have no skills for a job. There is nothing here for me anymore."

"I'm here for you."

"I know you are. But I need to find my own path. You have followed Father's path making furniture and it suits you. That is not me. I need to find my path on my own."

"Rin, where would you even go?" Reggie asked.

It was strange how much Reggie looked like their Father at that moment. The past several days and the conversation that they were having had aged him. Reggie was only seventeen but he currently resembled a man in his forties. He was worried about his little brother.

While Reggie looked like their Father, his catos closely resembled their Mother's. They meant that he was a devoted family member that will always be looking out for family. He would be the one to stay strong and level while others struggle to find their way.

"I don't know where I'll go," Rin looked up at the stars, "It's a big universe. I am bound to find my path somewhere in it."

"You want to go up there? You know if you do, the chief will not let you return."

"I know."

"What would you do?"

"Aurora said that there were other worlds that were being attacked like we were. Most of them are not able to defend themselves and are conquered. We lost our parents because of the Separatists. Millions more are losing more than that. I don't want someone else to lose their parents like how we lost ours. If I can help, I would like to," Rin said.

"It sounds like you have your mind made up."

"I do."

"And there is no way that I can change your mind?"

"Probably not."

"Well then little brother, I'm going to miss you."

Reggie grabbed Rin and pulled him into a big hug. This time Rin hugged back.

"I wouldn't start missing me just yet. I still have to ask if I can go with them."

"I have a feeling that they'll have you. You need to earn that warrior cato on your arm."


	5. Chapter 5: The path

Chapter 5: The path

Rin and Reggie reached the Gunships just in time. There were two that had still not launched and he could see Aurora outside of the ships with a few clones. They were in a field and at the edge of the field stood the chief and other high ranking townsmen. They stayed away from the light from the Gunships. They probably wanted to make sure that Aurora and her men were leaving.

Aurora looked to be heading inside the Gunship. Rin quickened his pace. He couldn't miss her. He called out her name. She stopped and looked around. She heard him but she could not see him in the darkness. Rin stepped into the light and called her name again This time she saw him.

"Rin? What are you doing here?"

"I had to ask you something," he said, "I'm glad that I caught you before you left."

Rin walked up next to her. He got out of the direct light as it was hurting his eyes. Reggie also came closer but he only got close enough so that he could hear.

"What is it that you would like to ask?"

"I was wondering if I could go with you?" Rin asked.

"You want to come with us? Why would you want to do that?" she asked him.

"You said earlier that there were other worlds that were under attack from the Separatists and that most of them were not faring as well as we were. I want to help. I lost my parents because of the Separatists and I don't want anyone else to lose their parents like I have lost mine," he told her.

"This can't be about your parents," Aurora said, "It sounds like you are letting vengeance guide your actions."

"I can assure you that I am not. But I am using their memories as my motive to help. I know the pain of losing my parents and I saw the look on many children's faces when they realized that their parents were gone. No one should go through that."

"What about your people? How do you know that we are not the evil that your chief claims that we are?"

"I know that you aren't. You have shown that to me with your actions. I also just know that I can trust you. I don't know how to explain it but I have this feeling in my gut that I can trust you. I don't belong here. My path is not on Keket."

Aurora looked conflicted. "Rin, I don't know if I can."

"'There are thousands of worlds that are aware of the war but very few do much about it'" he quoted her, "I want to do something about it. I want to help. Please."

Aurora rubbed her eyes. "Alright. Let me talk to the Jedi council about this and let me get back to you."

Rin grinned from ear to ear. He had convinced her. He was sure that she was going to take him with her. Aurora stepped behind the Gunship. Rin could hear her talking to someone but he didn't listen in because he didn't want to be rude.

"Looks like you are going to get want you want," Reggie said.

"It looks like."

"Are you sure that this is truly what you want?"

"I think so," Rin said, "Mother used to say that our spirit energy guides us in our path in life. Everything happens for a reason and I think that I am meant to go. I want to help and I know that I can't do that here. Why else would my cato say that I will become a great warrior, one who is honest and fights for what is right?"

"I thought that you never put much thought into catos and spirit energy."

"That was before all this. A lot has changed."

"Indeed it has. You are no longer my weakling little brother. You've grown up," Reggie was starting to get teary eyed; "There must be something in my eyes."

"You've changed too. The old Reggie had never shed a tear about anything. Now look at you. You've cried twice tonight. I think that you're going soft. I don't know if I could handle this new Reggie."

"Is that so…"

Reggie grabbed Rin and pulled him into a headlock.

"Still think that I'm going soft?"

"Yeah."

Reggie gave his brother a nuggie. "How about now?"

"Ahh, alright. You're not soft!"

Reggie let go. "And don't you forget that."

Aurora emerged from behind the Gunship. Rin and Reggie instantly straightened up when they saw her.

"The Jedi Council has given me permission to bring you to Coruscant with me. We can train you in the ways of a Jedi if that is still what you wish," she announced.

"It is."

"Alright. We will be leaving now."

Rin nodded.

"So I guess that this is goodbye then," Reggie said, "I'll miss you."

"Me too. This isn't forever. I know that we will see each other again."

"Until that time."

Rin embraced his brother in a big hug. He held him tight and didn't want to let go. He knew that leaving was something that he had to do but at that moment he didn't want to leave. He didn't want to leave his brother.

The brothers finally let go of each other after the hug had lasted long enough to be awkward.

"Stay safe," Reggie said, "Hey, ma'am, take care of my little brother."

"I will," Aurora told him, "Let's go Rin."

Rin stepped inside the Gunship with Aurora. As the engines of the ship started up, the chief appeared next to the ship.

"Where do you think that you are taking that child?" he demanded.

"I'm leaving with them," Rin answered, "You can't stop me."

"I will not try and stop you. But know this, if you leave with them, you will not be welcomed back here. Once you leave, you can never come back."

"I understand."

The Gunship started to rise into the air. Rin grabbed an overhead strap for support. He waved at his brother as they took off, watching him grow smaller and smaller. The doors to the Gunship closed, shutting out his brother.

Rin rubbed the tears out of his eyes. He was going to miss his home and his brother but he knew that he was going to see them again. Despite what the chief said.

"Are you alright?" Aurora asked him.

"Yeah, I'll be fine. Let's do this."

As they gained altitude Rin felt the pressure in his ears like he had before. The farther up they went, the colder it got. Rin could see his breath and was starting to shiver.

"Sorry about the cold," Aurora said, "These ships were not meant for high altitude so have little acclimatization. Once we get in the cruiser it will be warmer."

"Is that the large triangle ship?"

She smiled. "Yes it is. If you touch that panel beside you it will reveal a window. You can get a better look at it if you like."

Rin pushed the panel and a section of metal moved apart to reveal a small circular window. Rin had to crane his neck to be able to see out. He saw the cruiser and was amazed by it. He knew it was big, but he didn't think it was this big. It was the size of his town but was able to stay suspended in the sky.

They flew closer and the cruiser could not fit into the view from the window. They flew over the cruiser and then down into an opening that was along the top of the cruiser. For a second all Rin saw was metal but then he saw what was inside.

Inside there were more ships of all shape and size. There were several more Gunships as well as ships that looked only big enough for a single person and ones that could carry hundreds. There were people going every which way. Many of them were clones but there were a few around that weren't. Some of the clones had armour but there were just as many if not more that had a simple cloth uniform.

"Incredible, isn't it?" Aurora asked him.

"I think that incredible is an understatement."

They landed with a soft thud and the large side doors opened. The lights were bright in the ship and Rin had to squint and cover his eyes. Rin wandered outside with a slack jaw. All of this was grander then he could have ever imagined. Above him large doors were closing the where they had just entered.

"Why are the closing the doors?" Rin asked.

"We're going to be making the jump to hyperspace. It would cause harm to the ship if the hangar doors were open," she explained, "Come. I want you to meet someone."

Aurora led him through the hangar to a complex serious of corridors. They were walking for a while and there were so many turns and lifts that Rin did not know how he would ever find his way around. On their way they passed several people, mostly clones. Some of them gave Rin an odd look but he never noticed.

They finally arrived at what Aurora called the bridge. It didn't look like any type of bridge that Rin had ever seen. When he heard bridge he thought of something that crossed water or a large ravine. This bridge had a single elevated walkway that was surrounded by workstations on a lower level around it. It was busy as people moved around and shouted numbers at each other.

At the far side of the room there was a large window. He could just see the edge of his planet. It was a beautiful mixture of brown, black and purple. Next to the vastness of space, his home world looked so small and insignificant.

In the centre of the room was a woman in a grey uniform. She had short, sandy hair and blue eyes like Aurora's. She was also short and looked a little older than Aurora.

"Rin, I would like you to introduce to Admiral Maya Snow. She is in command of this cruiser," Aurora announced.

"Please to meet you," Admiral Snow said.

She stuck out her hand to shake. Rin shook her hand and tried to introduce himself but no words came out of his mouth.

"All this must be quite a lot to take in," the Admiral smiled. She had the same smile as Aurora. "Aurora tells me that you are going to Coruscant with her. It will take a couple days for us the get there. You will have plenty of time to rest and get accustomed to the ship."

"Admiral," a clone in a grey uniform called from one of the work stations, "Coordinates laid in. We are ready for the jump to hyperspace."

"Very well. Make the jump."

"Yes, ma'am."

The clone pressed a few buttons and the image outside the window changed. The stars seemed to stretch out then they disappeared. The view outside was a swirl of different shades of blue light.

"Are you alright," Admiral Snow asked Rin, "You seem to be squinting a lot."

"Sorry, it's just that the lights are bright," Rin answered.

"We can dim the lights for you," she said, "Klinger; can you dim the lights in here?"

The lights in the room dimmed to a setting that was much more comfortable for Rin. He was finally able to fully open his eyes. He wondered if he would ever get used to the lights like they were.

"I'm sorry about that," Admiral Snow apologized, "I suppose that growing up on a dark world you would be sensitive to light. You might be able to get something to help you with that when you are on Coruscant."

"What is Coruscant?" Rin asked.

"It's the capital of the Republic. I believe you are going with Aurora to the Jedi temple there. Says you want to be a Jedi like her."

"I will do my best."

"Well I can't complain about going back to Coruscant," Admiral Snow said, "It's been too long since I have been home and I can't wait to see my daughter. We'll get back just before her birthday."

"It's her birthday already?" Aurora asked, "How old is Rosalie? Three? Four?"

"She'll be five," Admiral Snow laughed, "And you better be there. She misses you."

"What does she want as a present?"

"I think that she will be happy with a visit from her favourite aunt."

"I will manage to do that," Aurora said, "Well I must be showing Rin around some more. Is there anything that you want me to point out to him?"

"Not that I can think of," Admiral Snow said, "You have free reign of the ship and you may go anywhere you wish, Rin. We have a room set up for you and if you require anything, all you need to do is ask. Don't worry about getting lost, this is my ship and I still get lost from time to time."

"Thank you."

Aurora led Rin off the Bridge and down another serious of corridors and lifts. Rin had no idea how he would ever find his way around.

"It must be nice having your sister on the ship," Rin said as they were waiting for a lift to go up, or down. It was hard to tell which direction they were going.

"It is. I guess that is one good thing about the war, I get to see her," Aurora said, "When war broke out, I didn't know that she was in the Republic Navy or had achieved the rank she had."

"How come you didn't know?"

There was a look of sadness or regret on Aurora's face. "It was because I hadn't seen her for twenty years. You see, I had been training with the Jedi from a very young age. I left home and started training when I was, well much younger than you. During that time, I never saw my family."

"Why?" Rin asked, "That's a long time without your family."

"The Jedi way is to not form close attachments. We are constantly in danger so it is not wise to form deep connections. They also say that such strong feelings and relationships can lead to the dark side of the Force. It's difficult to explain. If you are constantly worrying about someone, it means that you would do anything to protect them, possibly crossing the line."

"That sounds lonely," Rin said, "We have the opposite view on that. The strongest of us are the ones that have the most to lose. During the attack, the ones who fought the strongest were the ones that had families and friends to protect. They give us strength. And what is this dark side that you keep talking about?"

"Simply put, it's the forbidden arts of the Force. The Jedi use the light side to help while the dark side corrupts and used to cause harm. They are constantly trying to gain more power," Aurora explained.

"I can see that the Jedi and my people have different points of view on that. Maybe because all of us can use this Force as you call it. We see spirit energy as a force that guides us as well as a tool. There is not good or evil to a tool. A shovel can be a very useful tool, but it could also be considered a weapon if it is used improperly. Does that mean that there is a light and dark side to a shovel? Or is the evil from the person, not the tool?"

Aurora smiled. "You have interesting points of view. I hope that they will be able to help the Jedi."

The lift stopped and the doors opened. Rin stepped out onto another corridor that looked very similar to the others that he had seen. Aurora led him down the corridor and stopped only five doors from the lift.

"This will be your room," she announced. The door slid open to reveal a tiny space that someone had managed to squeeze two beds in. "I know it is small but with five thousand other people on board, living quarters are tight. Mine are just as small. You will have the room to yourself so you may have the choice of beds. There are fresh clothes already inside for you. The lavatory is right there. There is already soap and towels inside," she pointed to a door that was across the hall and over two, "Did you have indoor plumbing?"

"What's plumbing?"

Aurora looked a little flustered. She didn't know how to explain how a lavatory worked.

Rin smiled. "I'm joking. Yes we had plumbing."

"Good. That would have been awkward," Aurora sighed as she tried to compose herself, "If you are hungry, you can take the lift down a level to the galley. There you can eat whatever you like. Is there anything else that you need?"

"I think that I will be alright. Thank you. For all of this."

"I will let you get settled in. Get some rest. There is much to introduce you to."

She turned and left. Rin was alone in his new room. It was simple room with only the beds with a shelf between them. His new clothes were on the shelf as well as a comb.

The bed looked tempting but Rin figured that he needed a bath more then he needed sleep. He took the new clothes to the lavatory. He got a look of himself in one of the mirrors in the lavatory and was shocked that Aurora had introduced him to her sister in the state he was in. He had been wearing the same clothes for six days and hadn't washed in that time. He must have looked like some kind of beggar to Admiral Snow. His clothes were so simple compared to theirs. He had brown pants and jacket that didn't match with a red shirt that used to belong to Reggie so was too big for him. It didn't help his look that he was covered in dirt and his clothes were burnt in some places. His hair was messier then usual and was greasy with sweat and dirt.

It took Rin a while to figure out how to work the shower and soap dispenser. When he finally did, the water running off him was brown from the dirt. After his shower Rin got dressed in the new clothes provided to him. The material was soft but the clothes fit tighter then what he was used to. Most of his clothes were baggy but these fit close to his body. He thought that they made him look taller but skinnier. He felt bad when we had to make modifications to the pants because there was no spot for his tail.

Rin went back to his room and crashed on the bed. The bed was so soft and seemed to cradle his body on air. It was very different from his bed on Keket which had been stuffed with grass. It wasn't long before Rin had fallen asleep.

It had only been a few hours since he had left Keket but it already felt like he had been away for days. Once again his world was changing forever.


	6. Chapter 6: Jedi training

Chapter 6: Jedi training

It took four days to reach Coruscant. During that time, Rin was trying to get used to the cruiser as well as the new world that he had entered. Aurora had started teaching him about the Republic and Jedi order. She provided him with a thing called a datapad which had information on pretty much everything. She went over most of it with him but Rin had jumped ahead of her and was reading ahead of what they had covered.

Before they had started, Aurora had warned him that this material might be a little dry. Rin did not find it dry but instead found everything fascinating. He loved learning about the different races, worlds, technology and culture. He was amazed that all this knowledge was in the universe and the Yokios never knew anything about it. Much of what he was learning was probably common knowledge for the peoples of the Republic but to him it was all new. Aurora had said that he was learning fast and she was amazed at how much he retained.

While Rin loved learning about the new world around him, he was eager to begin whatever Jedi training was. Aurora had told him that as part of his training he will learn more about the different races and cultures of the galaxy and something called diplomacy. She said that he would also learn combat, different ways of the Force, how to fly a ship, how to repair a ship and build himself a lightsabre. It usually took someone ten to fifteen years to reach the rank of Jedi but Aurora thought that because of his ability to use the Force already, he would probably take less time. He would become a Padawan and be assigned to a Jedi as an apprentice once his training was done in the Temple.

While Rin was asking Aurora questions about the Republic, she was asking him questions about Keket and the Yokios. She had showed him the data they had on the planet and it was only a few paragraphs. All the other races that Rin was learning about had hundreds of pages on them. Keket was located in something called the outer rim so was far away from most other worlds and Coruscant. It wasn't the farthest away from Coruscant but apparently his people were hostile to all outside forms of contact. Many of the anthropologists that went to Keket were never seen again. For that reason the Republic had left them alone so very little was learned about the planet and its people.

Rin was enjoying himself on the cruiser but he did find that he was missing home. No one else on board looked anything like him. He was a stranger on a strange ship. He often felt lonely when his mind was not busy. He had talked to Aurora, Admiral Snow and some of the clones from the 507th battalion but he still felt lonely at times. He found that he missed home the most when he was eating. The food was good but he found that he was missing his mother's home cooking.

It wasn't helping his homesickness that ever since he was on the cruiser he had a headache. Rin's headaches weren't as bad when he was in his room where he could keep it dark, but on the rest of the ship, the lights were still hurting his eyes. The corridors weren't as bad but he found that the galley was the worst for the lighting. The bright overhead lights made it that he could barely open his eyes when he was eating.

When they had finally reached Coruscant, Rin was told to meet Aurora at Shuttle 4 in the main hangar. It took Rin almost an hour to find the hangar and then another half hour to find where the shuttle was. Aurora, Admiral Snow and several other officers were waiting for him when he reached there.

"Sorry I'm late," he apologized when he reached them.

"That's alright," Admiral Snow told him, "We were not waiting long."

Rin followed everyone onto the shuttle. The shuttle was different than the Gunship that he was on earlier. This one had seats along the long walls. Rin chose a seat and buckled himself in. He was starting to get butterflies in his stomach. He was at Coruscant. He would meet the Jedi Order. Would they like him? Would they even allow him to train with them? He couldn't remember the last time he was this nervous.

"I have something for you," Aurora announced as she took a seat next to Rin. She reached into her pocket and pulled out a pair of glasses that had dark lenses.

"What are those?" he asked her.

"Well I know that you have been having difficulties adjusting to the lights on the cruiser. When we land on Coruscant it will be daytime and it will be very bright. I had these made for you to help you see in the light," she explained, "They are based off the night vision that the clones have in their helmets. We've adjusted them so that they block excess light. Try them on."

Rin put on the glasses and noticed an instant improvement. The light in the shuttle was enough that he could handle but with the glasses it became so much better.

"This is amazing," Rin exclaimed, "Thank you."

"We want to make sure that you are comfortable," Aurora said, "It's not good if you can't see."

The shuttle launched from the cruiser and flew towards the planet. There was a window beside Rin which he was stretching his neck to see out of. Half of the planet below was lit up by the sun which was so close to the planet that Rin wondered how anything was able to survive that close. The other half of the planet was dark but was covered in millions of small lights.

They entered the atmosphere and Rin was amazed by the planet. Buildings stretched for as far as he could see. The buildings were very different than what he was used to. His home on Keket was two floors and small. Many of the houses had a similar construction. The buildings on Coruscant reached for the sky and were piled on top on one another. Thousands of speeders flew around the buildings. It looked like chaos. Rin was shocked to see that there was little in the way of vegetation. There were no farms, no rivers, and no trees. The planet was a giant city. Aurora was right about it being bright. He was glad he had the glasses.

"I was as amazed as you are when I first saw it," Aurora told him, "I guess that I still am every time I see it."

"There are no trees or farms," Rin observed, "How do you get your food?"

"Most of it is imported from other systems," Admiral Snow told him, "Because of the war, many of the trade routes have been disrupted so it has been harder to ship in the supplies that we need. I think that we spend more time protecting trade routes than anything else."

The shuttle landed on a platform with a soft thud and the rear hatch slid open. Sunlight flooded the shuttle and even with the glasses, Rin was still blinded. Rin unbuckled himself and stumbled out into the sunlight. It was the first time that he had ever been in sunlight. It was warm. It was a strange feeling but not unpleasant. The sun was relaxing, like a warm bath. So this was what it was like to be in the sunlight.

"Come Rin," Aurora called.

She was getting into an open topped speeder. Rin hurried after her and jumped in the speeder beside her. The speeder took off quickly and Rin was pushed back into his seat. The wind whipped through his hair and made his face go numb. They were going so fast. There was so much to see that Rin's eyes never stayed still.

They flew for almost an hour before they reached what Aurora told him was the Jedi Temple. It was a large, block like building that had five tall, thin towers on top. The speeder slowed and landed on one of the many platforms along the side of the building.

"Welcome to the Jedi Temple," Aurora announced, "Welcome to your new home."

Rin spent the next several hours touring the Jedi Temple with Aurora. The temple seemed to be just as confusing to navigate as the cruiser had been. There were series of grand halls, gardens, lifts and doors. How could he be expected to find his way around this place? The temple was amazing to behold. The architecture was beautiful and Rin was amazed at how such a building could be constructed.

Aurora made a note of introducing him to almost everyone that they saw. Rin was never good at names and there were so many people that he couldn't remember them all. Some of the people she just talked to in passing while others talked with her for several minutes.

It was true that the Jedi consisted of people from many different races. There was one that was green and reminded Rin of a fish. Another that was human, like Aurora, but had brown skin and was bald. There was a blue Twi'lek, a cute Torgruta girl that was about his age and a big human with a scar over one side of his face. The most memorable was a little old green man with large ears. He was so small that he only came to Rin's knee. It was amazing that such peoples existed. Each race had such variety to them. They had different colourings and different sized. Yokios only came in one colour.

Despite the diversity of the Jedi, he still felt like some of them were judging him. He didn't know why. Could it because he was a Yokios and they had probably never seen one before? Were they just as curious about him as he was of them?

Once the tour was over, Aurora showed Rin to his room. It was similar to the room that he had on the cruiser. It might have been a little bigger but it was just as bare. All there was were a bed, chair and shelves. There was extra clothing for him here as well. The clothing was different from what he had received on the cruiser. These clothes were simpler and looser fitting.

He was to start his training first thing the next morning and the training hall was easy to find from his room. Aurora said that he was going to be tested to see where he should be placed in his training.

Rin settled into his room for the rest of the day. He didn't stray too far from his room. When night fell, he had found a window and watched in awe as the city outside lit up. There was so much light from the buildings and the streets that it hardly looked like night. It was amazing how much other peoples relied on the light. To them it appeared more than just a way to see. They loved the light and could probably not function without it. He had read that some cultures feared the dark. He didn't understand why.

The next morning, Rin got up early and headed down to the training hall. He was nervous because he didn't want to disappoint Aurora. He wanted to prove that he had what it takes to become a Jedi. Rin thought that he was going to be late but when he entered the training hall, it didn't look like the instructor was there.

At first glance it looked like Rin was in the wrong room. There were five people already there, but they were all children. Many of them looked to be around five or six years old. Rin towered over all of them and that made him feel uncomfortable. Was he in the right place? Then he remembered that Aurora had told him that most Jedi start training at a very young age. He didn't realize that she meant this young. He was told that he was old for starting training. Though when Rin thought about it, he was probably about their age when he learned to use spirit energy.

The five children all looked at him when he came in. They looked at him funny. Rin didn't know if it was because they were wondering why this big kid was here or they were trying to figure out what he was. In the group there was a human girl and boy, a girl Mirialan, a boy Chiss, Rodian and Twi'lek.

"Morning," Rin said quietly.

"Are you our teacher?" the human girl asked him.

"Uh, no. I'm not."

"Are you the teacher's helper?" she asked.

"No. I'm a student, like you."

"You can't be a student," the Chiss boy said, "You're old."

"You look funny," the human boy said, "What are you?"

"I'm a Yokios."

"That's not a real thing."

"Yes it is."

"Why are you wearing dark glasses?"

The children starting asking him questions about what he was. Not all of the children were interested in him though. The Mirialan girl and the Twi'lek boy were cautions around him. They almost looked like they were afraid of him. They stared at him when he wasn't looking at them but when he did they would quickly advert their eyes. They would talk to the other children but not him. Rin couldn't figure out why. Could it be that they were afraid of him because he was so much older or was it because they were afraid because of his looks?

The door opened behind Rin and the children became quiet. Rin turned around to face the largest man that he had ever seen. He was so large that he probably had to duck to go through the doorway. None of the man's size was fat, he was pure muscle. The man was bald with a large cross shaped scar on his head. He had an eyepatch and the sleeves of his tunic were torn off to reveal his massive arm muscles. The Mirialan girl and Twi'lek boy seemed to relax once he entered the room. They were afraid around Rin but not this man. How was that fair?

"Welcome to your first day of Jedi training," the man's voice boomed, "I am Thor. I will be looking after your initial testing. From the testing that you will be doing over the next few days, we will be able to determine where you are with your abilities."

They children seemed to be excited by this. Rin was having butterflies in his stomach.

Five more Jedi entered the room behind Thor. "You will each go with one of the instructors and they will evaluate your abilities. Slovak, you're with me."

"Yes sir," Rin nodded.

Thor led him out of the room and down the hall. They seemed to walk for a while before they reached a small room that had two comfortable looking chairs.

"Take a seat," Thor said.

"Yes sir."

"What's with all the 'sir's'?" Thor asked, "You're not in the military. There is no need to call anyone a sir. Here in the Jedi, we mostly call our superiors 'Master'."

"Yes, master."

Thor took a seat and the chair groaned under his weight. He stretched out over the chair and seemed very casual. "Why so tense? Are you nervous?"

"A little, master."

Thor chuckled. "You're respectful. I like that. But you need to learn to relax. You remind me of my apprentice. A very respectful young lad but before he met me he was so serious. He is finally loosening up. Remind me that I should introduce you to him at some time. He's about your age."

Rin didn't say anything.

"So this is your first time on Coruscant. Must be a big change from what you are used to."

"I do not think that it could get any more different," Rin answered.

"Is there something troubling you?" Thor asked.

"Nothing, master."

"I see. You know it can get pretty lonely here at the Temple. Sure there are loads of people here but it can still get pretty lonely. Especially if you are the only one of your race here. You left everything that you have ever known to come here. Something that I understand was forbidden by your people?"

"Yes, master. The chief said that I will not be able to return."

"What do you think?"

"I'll be back someday."

Thor seemed pleased with his answer. He adjusted his sitting position so he seemed a little more serious. "Rin, I'm not going to lie to you, things are not going to be easy for you here. Jedi training is difficult but on top of that you will face challenges that will be unique to you. As you have noticed, you are much older than the other new students. The last oldest student before you was a nine year old boy about eleven years ago who just reached the rank of Jedi. Generally students are younger when they start. The only reason that we let him in was that he was very strong with the force. You have already have experience using the force so that is why you are here. Often times you will be training with students much younger than yourself. That can be stressful. For some classes like using the Force you will be in more advance courses but for others like mechanics, you will be with beginning courses.

"There is another obstacle that you face because you are a Yokios. As you know, you are the first Yokios to have been recorded to leave your planet's surface. Very little is known about your people. You might not have noticed this but there were a couple of children back there that were afraid of you. It has nothing to do with you and it's not your fault. I'm sure you have heard about some of the exploration missions to your planet in the past. They did not give your people a good image. This along with your looks and natural abilities has caused some cultures to make you into a type of boogeymen. They think of you as a myth that parents tell their kids to scare their children to eat their vegetables. Because of this, you will encounter prejudice and possibly fear towards you. Don't let this get to you."

"I understand, master," Rin said.

"Do you? I know what it is like to be fear based on looks. It may be something that you have to experience to understand. I am just giving you a heads up."

"I appreciate it, master."

"Alright then. Let's begin with your training."

For three days, Rin was tested to judge his level of skill. He scored high on his Force ability and had an average score on cultural knowledge and combat. He did poorly on mechanics. He was studying for it before the test but it just could not stick in his head. The testing was tough and started first thing in the morning and often went until supper. He was tired but every night he still studied in order to improve himself.

Once the testing was complete, the real training began. Rin was moved to a section of the temple that had older kids there that he would be doing some of the training with. He was still older than the other trainees but not by as much. He took mechanics and flying with kids who were about ten years old while he took force wielding with kids that were twelve or thirteen years old. He had to get up early and was in bed late. There was much that he had to study in order to catch up to where everyone else was.

He found that cultures were easy to him and quickly advanced in that subject. He studied every night at it but most of the time it didn't feel like he was studying. He wanted to learn about the different cultures and peoples in the galaxy. Studying for mechanics was a chore. No matter how hard he tried, he just couldn't get it.

Rin was amazed at how easily combat came to him. Whenever he was forced to face Koda on Keket, he would lose because he was not as physically strong as Koda. He was learning how to fight by using speed and agility. This was perfect for Rin. He was faster and more agile than the others. So much so that some of the instructors had difficulty keeping up with him. His biggest advantage was his tail. He could use it as an extra hand and could grab his opponents with it. He also found that his ability to hide in the shadows was also very useful. They taught everyone to use their nature abilities to their advantage so Rin did. In the shadows, nobody could see him.

It did not take long for Rin to fully experience the prejudice that Thor had talked about. It was mostly with the other students though sometimes Rin experienced it from the instructors. When he would ask for help in mechanics, he would often not receive any. He would ask the other students for help but none of them would give him any. Sometimes it was because they were afraid of him but he once heard them making fun of him because his culture was considered to be primitive. Even when he offered his help, he was often turned down. The children were cruel and would tease Rin about who he was. One day they went as far as shining a light in his eyes which disoriented him for several minutes. Rin did his best to not let it get to him.

The instructors also seemed to be judging him. Rin always felt that he was being watched. He felt like they were watching him, waiting for him to screw up. They were always taking notes when he was doing anything. They were taking more notes than with the other students. Rin took this as an incentive to not mess up. He did everything that the instructors asked but even when he did that he still felt like he was being judged. There was just no winning.

It was lonely at the Jedi Temple. Most of the other students avoided Rin outside of class. Most meals he ate by himself. Whenever Aurora was at the Temple she would check in with him. He enjoyed her visits because he felt that she was one of the few people that weren't constantly judging him. He didn't tell her about the prejudice or the bullying from the other students. It was his problem and he had to deal with it. He talked to her about everything else. As the war progressed, her visits started to come less often.

Thor was true to his word about introducing Rin to his apprentice although it took a month for it to happen. Thor's Padawan was a small human boy named Kenji who was a year older than Rin. They quickly became friends and would hang out whenever Kenji was at the Temple. He had long brown hair that was in a ponytail and big blue eyes. Kenji could relate to Rin because he also came from a primitive world and was picked on because he was small and frail looking. Kenji was serious but at times could be quite goofy. Rin enjoyed his friend's company and was always looking forward to the next time that he was going to be at the temple.

Early on in his training, Rin was told that the Chancellor was taken an interest in his training. Rin had no idea why. He met the Chancellor once but the old man gave him the creeps. There was something about him that made Rin uneasy and his gut told him to stay away from the man. So Rin did his best to avoid meeting with the Chancellor. He would make up excuses so that he would not have to meet with him.

After Rin was at the Jedi Temple for eight months, he and a group of other trainees were taken to construct their own lightsabres. It was Rin's first time outside of the temple since he had arrived and was glad for the change in scenery. It took Rin a while, he was one of the last to finish construction, but he managed to create his own lightsabre. The hilt was long and could produce a yellowish-orange blade from either side. The hilt could also lengthen to form a long metal staff that was perfect for non-lethal combat. He wanted it to be versatile.

Rin was proud of the design of his lightsabre but others were less enthusiastic about it. Many were upset by the colour of the blade. They said that it was too close to the Sith. There was pressure for him to change it but Rin felt that it was meant to be that colour. If it was meant to be green or blue like so many of the Jedi's lightsabres then it would have been.

It was another five months of rigorous training before Rin had heard anything about going out into the field. He was still experiencing difficulty with mechanics but other than that he was acing all of his training. There had been talk for several weeks until one evening at supper.

Rin was eating his supper alone as he normally did in the mess hall at the Temple. He noticed movement and looked up to see Kenji running up to him. He looked happy about something.

"Rin, I'm so glad that I found you," he gasped. He was out of breath. Kenji must have been looking for him for a while.

"What is it?" Rin asked after he had swallowed the food in his mouth.

"You will not believe the news that I just heard. I think that you are going to like it."

"Alight, I'm listening." Rin started to take a drink of his water.

"I just heard that you are going to be put up to Padawan!" Kenji announced.

Rin chocked on his water. He managed to swallow the water but still ended up coughing.

"I guess that I should have waited until you were done."

"You think," Rin gasped.

This was amazing. This was what Rin had been working towards. He was going to go into the field. He was going to be a Padawn. He was going to apprentice for a Jedi.

"I overheard my Master talking about it with the Council. They think that you are ready," Kenji told him, "I think that it's about time you got a chance like this. You have been ready for a while."

"You're serious about this," Rin asked once he could finally speak properly, "This is really happening?"

"It's really happening," Kenji confirmed, "I heard that they had been considering this for a couple weeks now. Apparently the holdup was because they were having difficulties finding a Jedi to assign you to."

"That's no surprise. I'm not exactly the popular choice."

"I know the feeling," Kenji said, "I was one of the last one picked in my class. Many thought that I was too small and weak. Oddly enough Thor picked me for that reason."

Rin was surprised and glad that he was finally going to be able to go into the field. It was what he wanted but he couldn't ignore the butterflies in his stomach. He was nervous. He did not feel that he was ready.

"I don't think that I'm ready," Rin told Kenji.

"You'll do fine," Kenji reassured him, "You're much better than I was when I started and I've been doing this since I was five. You've been here for just over a year and already you have accomplished more than most do in ten years here. You've done more before you even got here. You're good. Really good. Don't worry. You'll be fine."

That talk made Rin feel a little better.

"So, who's going to be my master?"

"Aurora Snow."

"Seriously?"

"She's going to be your master. Come on, they're in the main training hall."

Rin got up to follow his friend. It looked like he had grown some more since the last time that he saw Kenji. He had always been taller than Kenji by a little bit, now Kenji only came to just above Rin's shoulder. Rin was almost as tall as the clones. He was still skinny but he didn't look as small.

Finally, he was finally reaching his goal. Rin was going to become a Padawan which eventually led to Jedi. Looking back at who he was when the Separatists invaded Keket, Rin could barely believe how far he had come. He was no longer the scared naïve kid that stared up at the sky. He was still unsure about his abilities but he now knew that he had the skills to make a difference. He was finally going to make a difference in the war.


	7. Chapter 7: The order

Chapter 7: The order

Rin lay motionless in the shadows. There was movement around him from birds and the wind but Rin never took his eyes off the target. He was studying the movements of the guards, personnel, vehicles but most importantly the spotlights. His target was a bismuth mine and refinery that the Separatists were holed up in on the planet Drachma. Bismuth was commonly used in pipes and was used in the construction of cruisers as well as homes. It was the major export on Drachma.

The mine was about half a kilometre up a mountain with the refinery at the base of the mountain. The rocks and trees would provide cover, but once they were inside the refinery, there were very few places that could be used as cover. It was going to be tricky to get in and reclaim the mine without damaging the refinery or mine and protecting the workers inside.

It would be too dangerous to send the 507 battalion on a frontal assault of the refinery. There was too great a risk of collateral damage. That was why Rin was going in with a few of his Stealth Squad to locate the workers and take the refinery from the inside so that Aurora could lead the assault from the outside. Storm clouds were starting to roll in across the valley. It would probably take several hours to reach them but they would have to move fast or risk getting caught in the rain.

The Stealth Squad was something that Rin had formed shortly after joining Aurora and the 507th clone battalion nearly ten months ago. His ability to blend into the shadows quickly became an asset for the battalion and he now led a team that specialized on getting in and out unseen. The Stealth Squad clones had their armour painted black and had either dark green or red paint on it. The Stealth Squad consisted of B.J., Rosie, Hugo, and Winchester.

The 507 battalion had become Rin's new family. It was the first time that he had left Keket that he felt that he belonged somewhere. The clones included him in everything and treated him like he was one of their own. Because of him and the Stealth Squad, the Separatists had begun to be wary of him and the 507th. Some of the clones had started to paint lines on their helmets that resembled the catos on Rin's face. They said it was to inspire fear in the Separatists. Rin never told them what the catos actually meant.

Rin felt someone's foot tap him on the leg. Many of the clones had started sliding their feet about the ground whenever Rin was near and it was dark. He had been stepped on a couple times. The night vision visors that the clones had still had difficulty finding him in the dark.

B.J. laid down next to Rin. B.J. had binoculars and studied the refinery.

"The night shift will be ending soon," B.J. announced, "All the workers and clankers should be out of the mine at that time for the night. That will be the best time for us to move in. We think that the workers are being kept in that small wooden building at the northeast corner of the compound. Most of the clankers are set up on across the compound in those warehouses on the southeast corner. Communications are in that tower in the middle."

"Eight seconds," Rin mumbled to himself.

"Pardon?"

"We will have eight seconds to get over the wall before the spotlight on the north wall swings back around," Rin explained, "It will be tight."

"Nothing that we have dealt with before."

"Yeah."

"You alright, sir?" B.J. asked, "You seem preoccupied."

"Yeah I'm fine. I just have this weird feeling about tonight?"

"Weird like something bad is going to happen?"

"I don't know. Hopefully it's just something that I ate."

"Well that stuff that Hogan gave us before we left looked a little funny."

Rin stood up and B.J. followed. The rest of the Stealth Squad gathered around him. Rin had gotten taller since he first joined the 507th. He was now taller than the clones by a little bit. Rin thought that he was probably the same height now as his father had been. He was sixteen and it had been over two years since he left Keket. On Keket, he would have been looking for a wife and finding a trade. His life now could not be any more different.

"The compound is heavily guarded but I know we can do it," Rin started, "Rosie and Hugo will go in from the effluent pipes on the west wall. You will make your way to the communications tower and shut it down. B.J. and Winchester will take the north wall with me. You will set charges around that warehouse in the southeast corner. Let's take out as many of those droids out at once as we can. I will work on freeing the workers. This has to be done quietly. We have hostages in there. Any noise could alert the droids and there could be casualties. When we blow the droids, it will be the signal for the rest to come in. B.J, I will signal you when the workers are secured. Understood?"

The clones nodded and donned their helmets.

Rin, B.J. and Winchester made their way to the north wall while Rosie and Hugo headed west. The walls were not anything elaborate but they were effective. The compound was surrounded by a three metre tall chain link fence. There was barbed wire on the top that the Separatists must have added. There was about twenty metres between the fence and shelter. They would have eight seconds to get over the fence and to shelter before the spotlight would swing back around.

This was going to be difficult. The barbed wire would prove problematic for him but the clones should be alright in their armour. Rin could easily make the distance in eight seconds but the clones were slower. They had thought about cutting the fence but that would alert the droids to their presence. Climbing it would be noisy. Their best option was to climb an overhanging tree branch and drop down the other side.

Rin quickly climbed the tree and hid amongst the foliage. While climbing the tree he couldn't help but think about when he was harvesting gava fruits over two years ago. B.J. and Winchester climbed up beside him but it was not as easy for them. Rin watched the spotlight make several passes.

On the fifth pass, he signalled to move. He leapt out of the tree and landed on the other side of the fence. He didn't stop to check if the others had made it. Rin ran as fast as he could to the cover of the machinery. He stopped when he reached the shadows. B.J. and Winchester made it just before the light came back. Rin didn't say anything to them. He went off to the workers barracks and they went to deal with the droids. Rin didn't know why but for some reason he felt glad to be away from the clones. He usually enjoyed their company and comradery in battle but for some reason he didn't feel right being with them.

Freeing the workers sounded like an easy assignment but it was probably one of the hardest. Rin would have to take out the droid guards without them knowing and without causing harm to the workers. The aim was to have no casualties. When the 507th attacks the droids might try and kill the workers so Rin would have to protect all of them.

The workers were being held in a long wooden H block. At least there was only one building. The shape of the building could cause problems as he would not know what was happening in the other wing. The lights were still on inside and there was movement. Rin couldn't make out if it was the workers or the droids. Battle droids patrolled the perimeter. There was one posted at each exit and two along each long wall. There was a droid in each of the alcoves.

Rin crept closer to the barracks. The droids hadn't seen him yet. They probably wouldn't unless he was in the light from the windows of the barracks. Rin crept past the droids by the front entrances to the one in the alcove. The battle droid was watching the darkness with the blank expression that they all had. Once upon a time he had feared these droids. Now he is amazed with the level of incompetency that they seem to have.

Rin was behind the droids now and it still had no idea that he was there. He had to be quick so that he wasn't seen or heard. He took out his lightsabre and quickly activated it and deactivated it. The blade was only visible for less than a second but it was enough time to penetrate the droid and destroy it.

Rin lowered the droid to the ground. He paused and waited. Silence. He had not alerted the droids or the workers to his presence. He went to the two droids and the entrances. This was going to be harder since the droids were far away from each other but could still see each other. He distracted one by throwing a rock into the grass so it thought there was an animal there. It worked. He quietly destroyed the other droid and then did the same to the distracted droid. They still didn't know that he was here.

Rin continued around the barracks until all the droids were destroyed. Now it was time to clear the inside. He could not see any droids inside the barracks from looking in the windows. Many of the workers were asleep or preparing for sleep. Most of the lights were out. The wing on the west had the lights out by the entrance so Rin entered through there.

Inside the barracks was quiet. Bunkbeds lined the walls and each bed had a tenant. This must have been the side where those on the morning shift lived. They were all asleep with snores and the creaking of cots being the only sound. They weren't all asleep though. At the far end of the hall Rin could hear voices and there was a small light on. It sounded like they were gambling.

Halfway down the hallway was the washrooms that connected the two wings. The lights were still on and there were still people in the bathrooms. Rin was about to enter when he saw two battle droids coming through the washroom. They were telling the workers to hurry up for head count. One ushered the workers to the other wing while the other continued on.

The droid emerged from the washroom and looked around. It did not see Rin in the rafters. It walked down the hallway making note that everyone was in their bed. Rin followed the droid from above. He waited to see what the droid was going to do about the gamblers.

"You three," the droids squeaked, "Into your beds. All day shift workers are to be in beds by 2100 hours. Where did you get those cards?"

"Piss off you rust bucket," one of the gamblers sneered.

The droid raised its blaster. "Get into your bunks now or it's a night in the Cooler."

The gamblers didn't seem overly intimidated by this threat. They were purposely antagonizing the droid. One threw a serious of colourful insults at the droid while another threw his cards at it. The droids was starting to get annoyed and was getting close to using its blaster. This had gone on long enough.

Rin wrapped his tail around the droid's blaster and pulled it out of its hands.

"What the-?"

Rin cut down the droids before it was able to get another word out. The gamblers stared at him with a dumbfounded look on their faces. Rin was in the light so they were able to see him. He motioned for them to be quiet and then he disappeared back into the shadows.

The other droid appeared from the washroom. "What's taking so –ahhh!"

Rin cut down that droid and continued through the washroom. There were no more droids there. He went into the next hallway and there were two more droids. He cut through them quickly and with ease. That looked like the last droid. Rin double checked the inside and the perimeter before calling B.J. to blow the warehouse.

A few minutes later the warehouse was destroyed and Aurora was leading the rest of the battalion on the assault of the refinery. Rin could hear the blaster fire and explosions from his location but he didn't leave his post to help. His job was to protect the workers. Rin was alright with not being on the front lines in this battle. He had been on the front lines before and will be there many more times. He liked staying and protecting the workers. They were all safe and would be able to return to their families when this was done.

It took only an hour for the 507th battalion to regain hold of the refinery. All of the droids were destroyed and the refinery and mine were secure. It was a good day as they did not lose any men today. There were injuries and the battalion aid was attending to them but there was nothing too severe. They were lucky this time. Many of the troopers accredited their success to Rin and the Stealth Squad. They had destroyed most of the droids with the warehouse explosion. They saved a lot of time and a lot of lives.

"How are your men?" Aurora asked Captain Trapper once the refinery was secured. They were in the main office of the refinery and were seeing if the droids left anything behind that could be of use.

"There are twenty-seven wounded but all of them will make it," Captain Trapper reported, "Considering we took in over two hundred, I'd say that is pretty good. There were no casualties which I am proud to report. If it wasn't for Rin and his squad, it would have been worse."

Rin blushed. He didn't like receiving praise. He liked to stay in the shadows.

Aurora looked over at him and smiled. "I am aware of how fortunate we are to have him. Make sure that your men are well rested, Captain. We move out at dawn."

"Yes General," Trapper turned and left the office.

Aurora sunk down into the office chair after he left. "I could use some rest myself. We do spend more time protecting trade routes and suppliers than anything else. And I have all this mess that the droids left us to sort through."

"Would you like my help?" Rin offered.

"Thanks but I think that I can handle it. I think that I will spare you the bore of paperwork. I don't know how Maya does it all the time. I will just need some coffee and I will be fine."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes. Now go get some rest. You did well tonight and deserve and good night's rest."

"Alright. Let me know if you need anything."

"You will be the first that I call," Aurora stood to escort him out the door. She was looking older. She was tired of the war as was everyone else. She had cut her hair shorter and Rin thought that he was starting to see grey hairs. There were already creases around her eyes, mouth and forehead. "Oh Rin, there is one thing that you can do for me," she called out when she pushed him out the door.

"What's that?"

"Stop growing. You're making me feel short."

"You are short."

"Yes but I don't need to be reminded of it."

Rin laughed. She closed the door behind him. She was short. She didn't even make it to Rin's shoulder.

Once Rin was alone he felt a wave of fatigue wash over him. Maybe he did need that good night's sleep. It seemed a shame to sleep in the night but it was how everyone else worked. A few drops of rain landed on his face. He should get inside before it starts to rain harder.

The clones had set up tents to sleep in in the refinery. Rin preferred to sleep outside but on a night like tonight, it would be best to be inside. Rin made his way down to where the tents had been set up. He made a slight detour to the washroom before heading to the tents.

There were bright lights around the tents so Rin walked around behind the tents to avoid hurting his eyes. The clones were talking and laughing with each other. They all were a merry bunch when they weren't in battle.

While walking by one tent, something caught his eye. It was the light from a hologram. But who were the clones talking to? He poked his head around the tent and saw Captain Trapper. He was holding a hologram projector and the image it produced was that of an old man that was dressed in a black cloak. The man had his hood up so Rin didn't see his face.

"Captain Trapper," the old man croaked. Rin recognized that voice. Where did he hear it before? "Execute Order 66."

He didn't know what it was about those three words but they made Rin's blood run cold. He was filled with an overwhelming feeling of dread. Something had changed in Trapper. Something had changed it all the clones. They were no longer the merry bunch that they had been moments ago. It was like they were in a trance.

"Understood sir," Trapper replied.

Trapper turned off the hologram. He began signalling orders to the clones and they obeyed. He was directing them towards the office. They were going after Aurora.

Rin turned to warn her but he tripped over the tent and landed on his face. He stumbled to his feet and raced to Aurora. It started to rain harder. Rin was slipping in the mud slowing him down. He could see the office. He was almost there. But so were the clones.

Aurora walked out of the office half asleep. She was probably going for that coffee she talked about. Trapper gave the order. She never had time to react before the clones opened fire on her. One shot hit her in the chest and killed her instantly. But they didn't stop there. They kept firing on her until she was unrecognizable.

How could they do this? Rin couldn't believe what he was seeing. How was this possible?

A rage started to build inside Rin. It was anger that he had never felt before. He heard a primeval scream and then realized that it was coming from him. He was running towards the clones that had killed Aurora with his own lightsabre drawn. He didn't want to fight the clones but some force was pulling him towards them. They had to pay for their betrayal.

The clones opened fire on him but he deflected the bolts with ease. Several of the bolts reflected back to the clones and killed them. That was the first time he had killed something that wasn't a droid. It just meant that there were five less clones to deal with.

He leapt over the clones while still deflecting blaster bolts. He wrapped his tail around the neck of a clone, twisting him and pulling him down to the ground breaking the clone's neck. Rin was surrounded by the clones. He moved through the clones hacking and slashing at them. One by one they fell to him. They tried to shoot him and defend themselves but he was too fast. His movements seemed to be guided by an unknown force. He couldn't stop himself. His mind was in a fog as he was consumed by anger.

The last of the clones fell and the fog started to lift in his mind. What had he done? Fifteen clones were dead at his feet with the rain pelting down on their armour. Trapper, Rosie, Winchester, Hogan and B.J. They were all dead. He did that. He thought that he was going to be sick.

Shouts from down near the tents knocked Rin out of his thoughts. He had to get out of there. Rin set off running. He didn't know where just away from the clones. Spot lights were tuned on around the refinery. Rin got caught in the light from the spotlights. The clones opened fire on him. He deflected the blaster bolts and took out the spotlight. Some of the clones jumped out in front of him. Rin didn't hesitant in taking them down.

The fence was up ahead. Behind it were the mountains and the mine. If he could make it there he might have a chance. He extended the pole on his lightsabre and pole-vaulted over the fence. As he was over the fence he felt an impact on his right shoulder that knocked him off balance. He crashed to the ground on the other side of the fence. Scrambling to his feet he grabbed his lightsabre and started up the mountain. There was a searing pain in his right shoulder and his arm was throbbing.

Another spotlight found him and followed his climb. The clones fired at him but Rin dodged behind rocks and trees. Some of them were starting to follow him up the mountain. He finally reached the mine and ran inside. He didn't know his way around inside but at least he could see in there and the clones couldn't. Once in the mine, Rin ran and didn't stop. He had been running for several minutes before he stopped.

He could hear the clones entering the mine. He couldn't tell where they were but he didn't figure that it would take them long to find him. He couldn't fight them anymore. He was beginning to feel the weight of his soaked and mud covered clothes. He had taken a blaster blot to his shoulder. He couldn't fight them with one arm. He had to get out of there. But how?

A drop of water landed on Rin's face. Looking up he could see the sky. A ventilation shaft. It was small but he thought that he would fit. He jumped up to it but lost his grip as pain shot through his right arm. He would have to do this with one hand. Rin reached the shaft his second time up. It was tight and difficult with one arm. He slowly made his way up the shaft. For a while it seemed that he wasn't getting any closer to the surface but finally he reached the top.

He climbed out of the shaft. He was in the woods and he was alone. He would have to move fast. It would not take them long to figure out where he had gone. He couldn't travel by foot as that would leave footprints and they could track him. He climbed into the trees and leapt from one tree to the next.

Rin didn't know how far he had travelled when he stopped running. The pain in his shoulder was beginning to become unbearable and he was physically and mentally drained. When he landed his legs felt weak and he collapsed.

Everything that had happened that night was starting to sink in. The feeling of the clone's neck breaking in his tail came back to him and he vomited. Tears started streaming down his face. He had killed them. Why did he do that? That wasn't what he wanted. Or was it? He wanted them to pay for betraying Aurora. He was so angry that he couldn't help himself.

But why did the clones betray Aurora? Whatever Order 66 was caused a change in the clones. But how could they change so easily? Were they ever on the side of the Jedi? Was everything a lie? Maybe everything that the chief had said on Keket was true. Outsiders could not be trusted. No. That's not right. They are good. Were.

Rin found himself shelter under a fallen tree. He treated his shoulder before falling asleep. His dreams were restless as he could feel thousands of Jedi experiencing the same fate as Aurora. He could feel all of them die. Kenji, Thor and everyone else were killed. Even the children that he had trained with. No one was spared.

It was day when Rin woke. There was a moment that he hoped that the whole experience had just been a bad dream. His shoulder was still in pain. Last night was not a dream, it was real. He was alone. He never felt this lonely before. It had stopped raining and the sun was shining. In some cultures the sun was supposed to mean joy or good fortune. It was nothing but a reminder about what had just happened and that he was in a hostile environment. He was cold, wet, hungry and tired.

Rin took off his clothes so they could dry in the sunlight. He went through his pockets to see what he had. He had his lightsabre, a few credits, a cable, a communicator, his glasses, a first aid kit and a holocron that all Jedi were issued when they were away from Coruscant. It was used to call Jedi back to Coruscant if needed. It was just a cube that wasn't any good for anything out there.

Rin noticed that it was blinking. He opened the cube and the image of a bearded man with light brown hair appeared. Rin recognized the man instantly.

"This is Obi-Wan Kenobi. Republic forces have been turned against the Jedi. Avoid Coruscant. Avoid detection. Stay strong. May the Force be with you."


	8. Chapter 8: Kejimkujik space port

Chapter 8: Kejimkujik space port

The target was in sight. He was wandering around the vendors that lined the street. He looked at vendors but didn't pay much attention to them. Finally he stopped at the vendor that most people like him stopped at. Mr. Luckett's spiced ale.

Where else would cargo pilots spend their money after completing a job? It was cheaper than at the House of Silk and apparently was better. It was probably better for business to buy his booze there so that he could spend more money on the prostitutes at the House of Silk. Many of those women were starving and were freezing now that it was winter. They could use the money.

The target was in the perfect position. He was debating on which ale he wanted. His wallet was unguarded. It was just sticking out of his back pants pocket just underneath his coat. There were no Stormtroopers around and no one was looking. It was time to move in. The wallet slid out of his pocket and was out of his possession before he even realized it.

"That will be twenty three credits," Mr. Luckett told the man.

The man went for his wallet but it was not there. "What the? Where's my wallet?"

The man looked up and down the street but he could not see the thief. The thief could see him safely concealed in an alley.

"No credits, no sale," Mr. Luckett said. He took the ale away from the man leaving the poor sailor dumbfounded.

One almost felt sorry for Mr. Luckett losing a customer, but she had to eat too. It was winter and she had to keep warm somehow.

She opened up the wallet to see what her score was. Two hundred and seventy three credits. She took the cash and threw away the wallet. That might be enough to pay for heat. The space heater that she had was broken and she needed another if she was planning on making it thought the winter. She still had to pay back Dagger the money that she owed him. She was going to need a lot more credits.

It didn't used to be this way. There was a time that she had a home. When she wasn't living on the streets trying to scrounge for food. That was a long time ago. That was back before the Empire. It had been so long that she had slept in a warm bed or had a hot meal that she was forgetting what they were like. If it wasn't for the Empire she would still be living on Coruscant with her parents. A lot of things have changed since the rise of the Empire. Not all of it good.

It was no time to be nostalgic. There was still more work to be done. She scanned the crowd and quickly found another target. A tall, thin man with messy black hair, dark glasses and a long coat. He looked human but there was something off in his face. He was pale but there was something that just didn't look right. It looked like he was trying to cover something up with powder. The man was carrying a shopping bag that was full of supplies. Hopefully he didn't spend all of his money buying those things.

She followed the man through the crowd. When she was convinced that he didn't know that she was there, she reached out for his pocket. A gloved hand grabbed her arm before she reached the coat pocket.

"Looking for something, kid?" the man asked her.

He had a tight hold on her arm. Damn he was strong. How did he even know she was there? She tried to pull away from him but he didn't let go.

"Let go of me," she cried.

Something behind he must have startled him because he let go and disappeared into the crowd. She looked around and saw a pair of Stormtroopers making their way through the crowd. It was no surprise that he would take off from them. Most people on Kejimkujik space port weren't exactly law abiding citizens. Having a warrant out for your arrest was sort of mandatory to come there.

It was starting to snow. She pulled her hood up to keep herself dry.

She once loved the snow. Before the Empire she used to play in the snow with her family. Her mother grew up on a cold planet so she used to play in the snow whenever they went visiting relatives. She didn't remember any of her relatives that she used to go visit but she remembered the snow. When the Clone Wars started they stopped visiting. Her mother was away all the time so they didn't have the time. Now the snow was just cold and wet. There were no happy memories from it.

Well that was one failed attempt. First one of the day, that wasn't so bad. It was time to get to work. Who knew when Dagger would try and collect? She never liked Dagger. He was a smuggler that she made the mistake of stealing from. She now had to work for him to pay off what she owed him. Dagger was a big Devaron and had two large horns on his bald head that had the tips sharpened. She didn't trust him. She had heard stories that he impaled those who could pay him back with his horns. She hoped it wasn't true.

She went back to work was pulled into an alley before she could lift another wallet. She tried to struggle but she was being held by two large men.

"You know Missy; I don't think that the Stormtroopers will approve of you stealing from people like that?" the man in front of her said, "How many days in jail is it for pickpocketing?"

She hated it when he called her 'Missy'. "I don't know Dagger, but it can't be more than what they give for smuggling," she replied, "Are your boys really necessary to hold little me?"

"I have learned from experience that it never hurts to be too careful around you."

"That reminds me, has your last guy manage to get all the paint out yet? He was pretty pink last time I saw him."

The men on either side of her tightened their grip on her.

"Ow. You don't have to be so rough."

Dagger searched the pockets in her coat until he found her credits. He found her bag of credits and emptied it in his hand.

"Three hundred and eighty four credits," Dagger shook his head, "You're going to have to do better than that, Missy. You still owe a thousand and seventy six credits."

"What? Last time I only owed nine hundred and forty!"

"Interest, Missy, interest."

"That's not fair!"

"I think that it is. You come onto my turf and steal from me, don't think that I am going to let you just go. You're getting a good deal. Normally I would kill you for stealing from me. But you're young and a good thief. You are someone that I can use. But continue to be sloppy like you were back there with that guy and you are going to run out you usefulness."

"So essentially you're not going to let me go. You just want me to keep stealing for you."

Dagger smiled. It gave her the creeps. "As long as you stay profitable."

"Well maybe I won't keep stealing for you," she sneered, "What happens then?"

Dagger chuckled. "Boys, why don't we show the young Missy what will happen to her if she doesn't cooperate."

The men on either side of her tightened their grips. Dagger took out a small knife and held it up to her face. "Such a pretty face. Shame that we have to mark it up."

"I wouldn't call it a pretty face," someone said from the end of the alley, "I think that is a face that only a mother would love."

Dagger and the men turned to look at who was speaking. It was the tall, thin man with the dark glasses and long coat from before. What was he doing here? Did he just call her ugly?

"Who are you calling ugly?" she demanded.

"I was not talking to you," the man said, "I was talking to the Devaron."

"Who are you?" Dagger demanded.

"I am no one important."

"Well Mr. No-One-Important, I have some business with this girl. So if you don't mind, I must ask you to leave."

"I'm afraid I can't do that," the man said, "I can't let you harm that girl."

"What's she to you?"

"Nothing. She is merely just someone who tried to steal from me."

"Then don't interfere with things that do not concern you."

"If you are planning on hurting that girl, than it does involve me," the man said, "I would prefer if you would leave her alone, quietly, with no fuss."

Dagger looked to be getting annoyed with the intruder. "Joey, take care of this guy."

The goon called Joey let go of her and rushed after the man. She only blinked and Joey was on the ground unconscious. The man was standing beside him as if nothing had happened. Who was this guy? How could he take a big guy like that down so quick? She never even saw him move.

"What do you want?" Dagger demanded.

"I told you. Let the girl go and walk away." The man was so calm. His tone was serious but he never raised his voice or changed his manner. His face was also calm and composed. It was like this was just an ordinary day for him.

"I don't think so."

Dagger grabbed her and motioned for the other goon to take on the strange man. The other goon tried but he also ended up on the ground. Dagger was getting nervous. He did not see how this intruder had taken down his men. The intruder was fast.

Dagger threw his knife at the man and the man caught it inches from his face. The man seemed to disappear and there was a rush of wind. Dagger's grip on her was gone. There was a thud and Dagger was on the ground unconscious. The strange man was standing beside her with the same calm look on his face.

"I would suggest that you get away from here before they wake up," the man advised before walking away.

"Wait!" she called out, "How did you do that? Why did you help me?"

The man paused and she thought that she saw a small flash of sadness on his face. "You needed help. It's the least I could do."

"Thank you."

The man disappeared into the alley. Before he was completely gone from sight, it looked like Dagger or one of his men and landed a blow on the man. There was a dark mark on the side of his chin. They couldn't have hit him. It almost looked like grease or soot.

It didn't look like Dagger was going to cause her anymore trouble for that day. It was time to get back to work.

What did he think that he was doing helping that girl like that? That was stupid. After running into those Stormtroopers showing off was the last thing that he should have done. It was best if he could get back to the ship and get off the planet as soon as possible.

He caught his reflection in a store window. The powder was starting to wear off and his natural skin colour was starting to show. Rin popped the collar of his coat and continued on his way. It was starting to snow harder and it would wash off more powder. He had to get to the ship before anyone noticed. His tail was getting cramped under his coat.

The docks were busy as they usually were. It didn't matter how many space ports Rin had visited, they were all the same. Busy and crowded. People and cargo were moving every which way. Rin's ship the _Sky Runner_ was on the far side of the docks. His astromech, an old white and green R5 unit was waiting outside the ship. She was supposed to be overseeing the loading of the cargo while he was picking up supplies.

"Please tell me that everything is loaded," he asked her.

The droid squeaked and rocked back and forth.

"What do you mean you think? You've been sitting here watching it the whole time. Go check the manifest. Dave should have it sorted out inside."

The droid squeaked and rocked before rolling into the ship. Rin didn't know why he put up with that droid. She was forgetful, temperamental and was made up of so many spare parts that he didn't know if anything was original. But she came with the ship and without her he would not know how to fix the ship. She kept it running. Most of the time.

Rin walked into the cargo hold of the ship. Once he was inside away from view of the dock he unrolled his tail from his coat. He stretched and his body protested. It was going to be a couple days before he would be able to get rid of the stiffness. It was uncomfortable to hide his tail but it drew too much attention. If anyone found out what he was he would probably be hunted down like the other Jedi had been.

The crates in the cargo hold were piled almost to the ceiling and filled the floor. It looked like everything was there. Dave would know if there was anything missing. This was what the cargo hold usually looked like. He flew the long distance supply routes for the outer rim so the cargo hold was usually pretty full. It was lonely but it kept him away from other people. It had been eight years since that night on Drachma and he has done his best to stay hidden during that time.

R5 rolled around the crates and nearly bumped into Rin. She beeped and squawked. Dave confirmed that everything was loaded.

"Alright then. Get the ship ready to leave."

R5 rolled away and Rin made his way to the cockpit. The cockpit was facing the docks and from up there the people looked like insects. He radioed the control tower for permission to launch. Kejimkujik was strange because they were the only space port that had a control tower. It was a relic from the Clone Wars. He was granted clearance to launch and began to pull away from the dock.

A light started to flash on the controls.

"R5, close the cargo hold doors," Rin called over the intercom. She was always forgetting to do things like that.

Looking down he noticed that there was some kind of commotion on the docks. He could see Stormtroopers pushing through the crowd. They were looking for something or someone. Rin thought it best to not stick around and find out what it was. He pulled away from the dock and flew away.

Just as he was leaving the atmosphere he noticed a Star Destroyer in orbit around the planet. That wasn't there earlier. One of the engines was damaged and there were blaster marks on the hull. Someone was actually crazy enough to take on a Star Destroyer? When he was safely past the Star Destroyer he made the jump to hyperspace.

He set his glasses on the controls and slumped into his chair. It was going to take a week to reach Dakar. It was going to be a long flight. It was time to wash the powder off his face. He got up to wash up but for some reason he felt like he should check the cargo hold. He didn't know why because he just checked it. Something was telling him to go down.

Rin went down to the cargo hold and had a feeling like there was someone there. Dave was usually in the cargo hold but it wasn't him. He started to go up and down the aisles of crates. Near the back of the cargo hold he found the stowaway.

Wedged between two crates was a teenage human girl with short blonde hair and blue eyes. She was small and was wearing a hooded coat that was too big for her, baggy pants and fingerless gloves. It was the girl from before. It was the girl that tried to steal from him and that he had saved from that thug. How did she get on his ship? It was too late to do anything about it now. He hid his tail back up in his coat.

She looked harmless. She was probably trying to get away from the goons that were after her before. He couldn't leave her in the cargo hold all alone. He had been in places like this before and knew how cold and uncomfortable they could be.

"You know, you might be more comfortable in the cabin," Rin said. The girl jump and twisted to see him. It was dark in the hold but he still had the powder on his face so she could see him. "It is warmer in the cabin and there is food up there. Unless you want to stay in the cargo hold and then I am okay with that if you are."

"It's you," the girl said.

"Did you want to stay here or did you want to go up to the cabin?"

The girl slowly stood. She was short and didn't make it to Rin's shoulder. There was something about her that was familiar.

"You aren't going to throw me out?"

"Not unless you want me to," Rin said, "I am headed to Dakar so if you want, I can take you as far as that. It's your choice."

"I think I will go with you."

"Okay then. You look cold and hungry. Let's get you something warm to eat."

Rin led her up to the cabin.

"So do you have a name or do I just call you Missy?" Rin asked her.

"I hate it when Dagger called me that. My name's Ro Winters," she told him, "What about you?"

"I'm Rin Selleck."

"Why is it so dark in here?"

"Uh, this is an old ship so to save power I keep the lights low," Rin lied. He didn't know how much of that lie was true. When he bought the ship the seller told him that the power core was touchy and he has had problems with it in the past.

"This is the main living area," Rin announced as he walked into the cabin, "There is a kitchen here so you can make whatever you want. Just make sure you clean up after yourself."

Ro looked around the space and let out a small scream.

"What is it?" Ro was staring at the Commando droid that was sitting at the table. "Oh, that's just Dave. Don't worry he's harmless. I bought him a couple years ago from some kid who was reprogramming old battle droids."

"Isn't it illegal to own battle droids?"

"Probably. But he's better company than any protocol droid."

Dave stood and walked over to them. "I am sorry that I frightened you. I often scare people without meaning to."

"That's alright," Ro still seemed nervous about Dave. Most people were. It might be why Rin liked having him around.

"So what are you up to?" Rin asked the droid.

"Just balancing the accounting."

"He's really good at it too," Rin said, "When I had R5 doing it, everything was just a mess. And I hate paper work."

"Who's R5?"

"She is the astromech that is running around here somewhere. She runs the maintenance on the ship."

"Your astromech is a she? I didn't think that droids came as girls."

"Neither did I. But she got mad when I called her a 'he'. Be careful around her. She is very temperamental and likes to run over people's feet."

"Seriously?"

"Yeah. I was almost arrested because of her once."

"Alright. Is there anything else that I should know?" Ro asked.

Rin led her down a small hallway. At the end of the corridor there was a ramp up to the cockpit. "The washroom is right there and you can have either one of those two rooms. If you need anything just ask."

"Why are you helping me like this?" Ro asked, "Most pilots don't take well to stowaways. You're treating me like I'm your guest."

"I know what it is like to be in your position. I don't have a problem helping you as long as you don't cause me any problems for me or my ship. You try to steal from me or any of my cargo, if you invade my privacy or cause any problems and you are getting kicked out at the first space port we come to. Understand?"

Ro nodded. "I understand."

"Good. I will let you get settled."

Rin left Ro in the hallway and walked back into the living area. He sat back down next to Dave and sighed.

"This is an interesting surprise," Dave said not looking up from his work, "I am glad that you have finally decided to find a friend that isn't a droid."

"She's not a friend. She is just a stowaway. She's getting off at Dakar."

"Shame. You looked like you were happy to have her around."

"Eww. She's a kid."

"I did not mean it in that way."

"Well I sure hope not."

Dave made a sound that sounded like he was sighing. "I just meant that it looked like you enjoyed having someone else around. You are too isolated from everyone. You behave like there is this big difference between you and everyone else."

"That's because there is. I'm not like everyone else. If I didn't hide then I would have the Empire hunting me down. No thank you."

"Are you going to show Miss Ro who you are or are you planning on hiding the whole time she is on board?" Dave asked.

Rin shrugged. "I'll have to. So that means no matches while she's here."

"It is not good for you to keep your tail concealed like that for long periods of time," the droid advised.

"Yeah I know. I'm already feeling it in my back.

"You should tell her. It wouldn't hurt to let someone get close to you who are not a droid. If not to improve your overall mental health, at least your physical health."

"I can't let anyone get too close. Anyone who is close to me dies."

"Are you saying that because that is what the marks of your face supposedly mean?" Dave asked, "Are any of those deaths your fault?"

Rin sighed. "Some of them."

"You need a friend," the droid told him, "It does you no good to shut yourself off from the rest of the world."

"I hate it when you are trying to be a shrink," Rin said.


	9. Chapter 9: The secret's out

Chapter 9: The secret's out

Ro woke up the next morning not remembering the last time she had such a good night's sleep. The night before she had a good supper, a hot shower and a warm bed to sleep in. It had been years she had all of those things all in one night. Now if only she could get some fresh clothes. She should have jumped onto a cargo ship a long time ago.

It was only because she had gotten on this ship that she was so comfortable. If she had gotten on to any other ship at Kejimkujik she would be in the brig, in the hands of the Empire or dead. She was grateful for Rin's kindness but she had a feeling that there was something off about him. She didn't think that he was dangerous; she just felt that he was hiding something big.

She didn't know why but for some reason she felt comfortable around Rin. She felt like she could trust him. She wasn't sure why because she had never met him until the day before. His eyes freaked her out a bit because they were red. When she thought about what he did to Dagger she thought that she should be frightened of him but she wasn't. There was something about him that was familiar.

There wasn't anyone in the living space when she went to get something to eat. It was quiet on the ship. At first Ro liked the quietness. It was a big difference from the streets of Kejimkujik. But now the silence was getting annoying. She couldn't imagine what it would be like all the time. It was a lonely existence.

Rin came in when she started eating. He still had his long coat and gloves on. It was warm in the cabin. Why did he have his coat on? He looked stiff, like he didn't sleep well. Rin poured himself some coffee without saying anything.

"Aren't you warm?" Ro asked him.

"Pardon?"

"Well you have your coat and gloves on. I think that would be warm in here."

"I'm going to do some work in the cargo hold later," Rin responded.

"Is there anything that I can do to help?"

"I don't think so."

There was an awkward silence as Rin sipped his coffee and Ro ate her breakfast.

"Did you find everything that you needed last night?" Rin asked.

"Yes, thank you."

Another awkward silence.

"Can I ask you a question?" Ro asked.

"Technically you just did but go ahead."

"What made you want to become a long haul cargo pilot?"

"It wasn't so much as want as much as it was out of necessity," he replied, "I needed the money and I wanted something that kept me away from people. I already had the skill set so it seemed like a good choice."

"Why would you want to be away from people? Is that why you hide your appearance?"

Rin seemed to get unsettled by that question. "Excuse me?"

His tone told her that she had crossed some sort of line. "Well it's just that you have quite a lot of powder on your face. It just looks like you are trying to hide your appearance."

"You don't think that maybe this is just how I look?"

Ro suddenly felt very small. Why couldn't she keep her big mouth shut? "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to offend you."

"It's alright," Rin said although Ro did not think that he meant it, "I have work to do."

Rin left the kitchen leaving Ro alone. She regretted asking Rin about his looks. She was just a stowaway on his ship. She had no place to ask such things.

She finished her breakfast and was cleaning up when Dave came in.

"How was your sleep?" the droid asked.

"Alright," she answered quietly.

"Is there something wrong?"

Ro brushed the hair out of her face. "I think that I crossed a line with Rin. I asked him about the powder on his face when I probably shouldn't have. What's his deal anyway?"

"His deal? Well I know that he is bad at Sabacc so it is not very hard to know what cards are in his hand," Dave said.

"That's not what I meant."

"Did I misinterpret another figure of speech?" Dave asked.

"Just a bit."

The droid looked to be thinking. "His deal? Did you mean what sort of agreements that he has made?"

"No," she answered, "I want to know why he hides his appearance. He denies it but I can tell."

"That is something that he will have to tell you himself," the droid said, "It is not my secret to keep. It is his. Give him some time and he might tell you. He has been keeping himself locked up in here for a long time. It will take a while before he is comfortable enough in telling you."

"What is he hiding from?"

"That is something that he would have to tell you," Dave answered, "But in my experience, you have to give something to take. He does not know you. So if you offered something about yourself, he might offer something in return."

"Thanks Dave."

"May I ask Miss Ro, why do you want to know about Master Rin? From what I have understood, you will be leaving us at the next port."

"I don't know," Ro admitted, "There is something about him that is familiar."

"Odd. He said the same thing about you. Well, I must be getting to work."

Dave left abruptly without saying anything.

Rin sat in the cockpit admiring the stars. Despite all the years, he still loved the beauty of the stars and the mysteries that they held. There were stars that he could see that were yet to be discovered and stars that didn't even exist anymore. The universe was just as big to him now as it was back on Keket. Maybe even bigger.

He heard movement behind him and tucked his tail under his coat.

"Hey," Ro greeted him quietly as she walked up behind him. She took a seat in the co-pilot's chair.

"Hey."

"I wanted to apologize for earlier," she said, "I shouldn't have asked about the powder."

"That's alight. I shouldn't have snapped at you," Rin said.

Awkward silence.

"Why are we out of hyperspace?" Ro asked.

"We have to. If we didn't than the hyper drive would overheat," Rin explained.

"How much time does this add to your route?"

"About a day. If the hyper drive overheated than we would be stranded for days. It's not that bad. The biggest problem is that during the time that we are out of hyperspace I have to keep watch for pirates. Considering how old this thing is, an extra day to my route is pretty minor."

"Is there such thing as a new freighter?" Ro joked.

"Yeah but unfortunately they belong to the governments of the different systems," Rin answered, "It's silly when you consider that private freighters like me move most of the supplies around the galaxy."

Ro looked out the window and studied the stars. "You know, I used to dream that I would travel the galaxy. My mother was in the Republic Navy and I wanted to be like her. That changed with the Empire. Everything changed with the Empire."

"Do you mind me asking you what happened to you mother?" Rin asked.

"She died years ago," Ro said. She seemed to be sad and angry. "She would have been considered a war hero but the Empire called her a traitor and dragged her name through the mud. When the Jedi were branded as traitors of the Republic she refused to believe it and tried to defend them. After she was arrested, my father took me and we ran. He worked in communications so he tried to tell everyone that the Empire was the evil, not the Jedi. He was arrested for treason as well."

"So how long have you been on your own?"

"Five years," she told him, "It's not that bad. I quickly learned how to survive. I had to."

Rin sighed. He had been in her position before. After the rise of the Empire, he was hiding on Drachma for months. He had to steal and scrounge in order to survive. There were times that he almost died in those mountains.

"How much do you know about working on a cargo ship?" Rin asked.

Ro shrugged. "Not much. I suppose as much as anyone else."

"Well if you can prove yourself useful on our way to Dakar, maybe I could offer you a job."

Ro's face lit up. "A job? You serious?"

"If you want it. But you have to do the work?"

"Um, okay, yeah. What is there to do here?"

"I would check with Dave. He usually has a long list of things that need maintenance and repair. You are probably better help to him than I am."

"Okay then. I will do my best," Ro got up to leave but paused, "Thank you Rin. For everything. From the moment that we met you have been helping me. I don't know why because I don't feel like I deserve your kindness. Thank you."

"It's no big deal. Go to work."

Ro smiled at him and went to find Dave. There was a moment that she reminded him of Aurora. When she was talking about her parents she almost looked like Aurora. She wasn't quite his old Master, maybe more of Admiral Snow. It must just be a coincidence.

Ro proved herself to be quite useful around the ship. She had helped Dave repair the hydraulics on the cargo bay doors, the cargo bay heater and water heater. Rin had tried to help Dave and R5 with the repairs on the ship before but he wasn't much help. He wasn't allowed to fix anything anymore unless it was the furniture.

Ro had gone to bed early that night. Rin took that time to shower and clean off the powder from the face. It was really starting to itch and he didn't know how much more he could take. Is this what it would be like if he did give Ro the job?

"R5, come here," Rin whispered to the astromech. He was in the main hallway just outside the washroom. R5 rumbled and squawked as she came down the hall. "Could you make any more noise?"

To prove that she could, R5 squawked louder and rocked back and forth.

"Shush! I need you to be quiet. I have a job for you."

She quieted down and listened. She liked it when he gave her little jobs.

"I need you to stand watch outside the washroom for me. If Ro comes by, don't let her in," he ordered.

R5 beeped.

"Because there is no lock on the door. That's why you are keeping watch."

She seemed to beep in agreement. Rin just hoped that she would have the attention span to keep watch while he was getting cleaned up.

Rin went in and had his shower. It felt so nice to have the powder off his face. It was too bad that he would have to put it back on the next morning. But the powder was nothing compared to his tail. His tail and back were stiff. If he had to keep this up for much longer he was probably going to cause serious damage to his back. Maybe he should show Ro who he was. In the past, people never responded well to seeing him as he was.

He checked his reflection in the mirror to make sure all the powder was washed off. In some cultures, including the Yokios, he would be considered attractive. His hair was still messy and he could never get it to do what he wanted. He was lean but muscular. He trained with Dave in combat almost every day. He was in peak physical condition. There were times that his shoulder bothered him but it was rare. On his right shoulder blade was the scar from where he had been shot. The scar was nastier than it should have been as it took a long time to heal.

Rin studied the cato on his arm and chest. A great warrior, someone who was honest and fought for what was right. During the Clone Wars he believed that. How naïve he had been. The village elder was right about the cato on his face. He had suffered great loss. First his parents, then Aurora, the Jedi and clones. Everyone he was close to was dead.

Rin was done his shower and was getting dressed when he thought that he had heard a noise outside. He quickly pulled on his pants and went to check it out.

"Hey, R – ahh!"

The lights in the washroom turned on and blinded Rin.

There was a scream and Rin started getting hit with a towel.

"Who are you?" he heard Ro demand. She sounded scared, "How did get in here?"

"Ro – agh- It's me! Ow! I'm Rin."

Ro stopped her assault with the towel. "W-what? How are you Rin? Rin's human."

"No I'm not. Now could you turn off or at least dim the lights?"

Ro did as she was told. The lights were not as low as he would have liked but at least he could open his eyes.

"Who are you?" Ro demanded, "Who are you really?"

"I told you. I'm Rin. I haven't lied to you."

"Except for the fact that you weren't really human."

"I never said that I was. Look, Ro, I never wanted you to find out like this. I had R5 keeping watch so that you would see me like this."

Ro looked to be flustered. She was just realizing that she had walked in on him in the shower. At least Rin had pants on. "She wasn't there. The door was not locked and the light wasn't on. I didn't think that there was anyone in here. How could you hide something like this?"

He would have to deal with R5 later. "The door doesn't have a lock. I will explain everything," he told her, "But let's sit down and talk about it."

Ro backed out the door. She did not want to take her eyes off Rin. Rin reached for a shirt and stumbled.

"Are you alright?"

"I'm fine. I'm still seeing spots."

The two of them went down to the living area and sat around the table. Neither of them talked as Rin got Ro a glass of water. She looked pretty shaken up.

"I know that you have a lot of questions," Rin said quietly, "I will do my best to answer them."

Ro took a sip of the water. She looked to be trying to organize her thoughts. "How – how could you hide yourself like this? You are convincing everyone that you are something that you're not."

"I didn't convince you. You saw that I was hiding my appearance."

She laughed. "I thought that you were hiding a scar or some sort of rash. I didn't think that you were hiding your race. What are you anyway?"

"I'm a Yokios. It's alright if you've never heard of them. We haven't had any contact with the rest of the galaxy. I am probably the only one to have ever left our planet's surface," Rin explained, "I am from a dark planet called Keket. My people have evolved to the dark and our eyes are very sensitive to the light. That is why I keep the ship so dark."

"I think that I might have heard about you," Ro said slowly, "I think I remember my mother telling me about them. You are mostly farmers."

Rin nodded. "Yeah. Most people don't know that."

"But why hide?"

"Most people don't take to kindly to me. In some cultures my people have been made to be some sort of bogeyman."

"That's not the whole truth," Ro said, "People don't hide themselves because they don't want to be treated differently. You're hiding from something, aren't you? Why else would you run from the Stormtroopers on Kejimkujik?"

"I'm just trying to keep a low profile."

Ro backed off that topic. She felt that it was a touchy topic. Hopefully he hadn't done anything too bad. "If no one had left your world, why did you?"

"We were attacked by the Separatists. The Republic came to help. At the time I had convinced myself that I wanted to go with them because I wanted to help with the war. Now I think that I was trying to prove myself. I also think that I was running. Everything that I knew was destroyed. I needed something to hold on to."

"Did you help in the war?"

"It doesn't feel like it."

"Did you get those tattoos in the war?"

Rin rolled up his sleeve of his left arm. "There not tattoos. They're catos."

"What's the difference?"

"Tattoos are ink that you willingly put on your body. Catos are something that your born with," Rin explained, "Don't worry, I got them mixed up too at first. Every Yokios is born with a different set of catos. I guess they could be compared to the markings that the Torgruta have."

Ro yawned and leaned back in her chair.

"You should go back to bed," Rin told her, "We can talk later. Ro, when we get to port, you can't tell anyone what I am. Can I trust you to keep my secret?"

"I won't tell anyone," Ro said. She got up and walked to her room.

Rin sighed and leaned back in his chair. She took the truth about him fairly well. Better than he expected. She still didn't know everything. He wasn't about to tell her about Drachma. He felt that she could be trusted.

He was going to have a word with R5 about wandering off when he gave her a job. And he would have to have Dave put a lock on the bathroom door. But first, to deal with R5.

Rin got up as Dave entered the room.

"Hello," Dave greeted, "I take it that Miss Ro has found out about you."

"Yeah. I told R5 to watch the door but she seemed to have wandered off. Have you seen her?"

"Oh I wouldn't put too much blame onto R5. She is old. I hear that old people have a tendency to wander."

"She's a droid. She doesn't have Alzheimer's. There has to be something that we can do to fix her memory. Can you see if there is anything that you can do?"

Dave was moving strangely. It was like when he tried to surprise Rin with a Birthday present. "I do not think that it will be necessary to do all that."

"She didn't wander off did she?" Rin asked Dave, "You lured her away. You planned for Ro to find out me."

"It was for your own good. You needed someone to confide in and Miss Ro seemed to be the best option. How could you have a friend if you hide the real you all the time. And might I add that R5 really didn't want to leave her post," Dave paused and seemed nervous, "Sorry sir."

"Dave, never meddle in my life again," Rin said. He left to go to his room but paused in the doorway. "Thanks. I wouldn't have had the courage to do it by myself."

It was late when Ro woke up the next morning. It looked like Rin was already up. He had left a note on the table with jobs that he had for her. She smiled when she saw that fix the lock on the bathroom door was at the top of the list.

It was still hard to believe what had happened the night before. Rin had been hiding his race from the rest of the galaxy. He had told her a lot but he didn't tell her why he was hiding. He said that it was because of how people treated him but Ro didn't believe him. People might hide physical defects or tattoos to avoid being treated differently, but to pretend to be a different race; it had to be something big. What could Rin be hiding from? He had been in the war. Maybe it was something that he had done in the war. Maybe he was like her mother and challenged the Empire.

Ro sat down for her breakfast. The ship was lonely as usual. She thought that she could hear clanging metal. She thought that she had heard sounds like that a couple nights ago. It was an old ship and she could often hear the metal groaning and the engine rattling. But these noises were different from the rest of the ship. The clanging was not regular and was only some of the time.

After her breakfast, Ro set off to the tasks that Rin had assigned for her. There were only a few tasks on the list and only took her two hours to complete. It was odd that she didn't see Rin or Dave while she was working. R5 rumbled by her a couple time but even she was not around as much as she normally was.

Ro was getting a drink and she could still hear the clanging. It was coming from the cargo hold. Maybe something was coming loose. She went into the cargo hold and looked down. It was dark but it was light enough to see what the clanging was coming from.

On the floor of the cargo hold were Rin and Dave. They were fighting. Dave had two, meter long pipes while Rin had a single long staff. Dave would attack and Rin blocked. Then Rin would attack and Dave blocked. They were so fast that Ro could barely see their movements. Dave was a Commando droid so his abilities were not a surprise, but Rin. Rin was amazing. She knew that he was strong from back on Kejimkujik, but it was amazing at how good he was.

R5 was up on the platform with her.

"Should I be worried about them?" Ro asked the droid.

R5 beeped and squawked.

"They do this all the time? Why?"

The droid beeped.

"For something to do? Seriously? How long have they been at it?"

R5 beeped.

"Four hours? How long do they usually go?"

She beeped again.

"Until whoever wins. And how long does that take?"

R5 rocked back and forth.

"They've gone at it for twelve hours once? That's stamina."

Below them, Rin used his tail to grab a pipe from Dave and used it to fight. It was amazing. He was able to use his tail like another hand.

"He's amazing. How is he so good?"

R5 squawked and rocked back and forth.

"You don't know? How can you not know? How long have you been with him?"

She beeped.

"Four years. You've been with him for four years and you don't know why he can fight that well?"

There was something about the way that Rin moved that was familiar to her. He moved with such grace and he never missed a step. He reminded her of her aunt. Her aunt had been a Jedi and she remembered her moving with the same grace. Maybe that was what he was hiding.

Rin spotted her and motioned for a time out. Dave acknowledged and put down the pipe that he had, nodded and walked away. Ro walked down the stairs to the cargo hold floor. Rin met her down there.

Despite for fighting as long as he was, he didn't look that tired. He was sweaty and breathing hard but he didn't look fatigued. He was wearing a sleeveless shirt that revealed the cato on his arm. It also showed what looked like an old scar on his right shoulder.

"I didn't wake you did I?" he asked as she reached the bottom of the stairs.

"No. I had been up for a while. Everything that you asked for is done. Is there anything else?"

Rin thought for a moment before shaking his head. "I don't think so. I think that you got all of it. Unfortunately there really isn't much to do here."

"Is that why you were training with Dave? For something to do?"

"A bit. It's something to do and it's good exercise. There's not much to do here so I try to keep myself busy."

"When most people want exercise, they go for a run."

"I'm not most people," Rin took a drink of water, "Besides running is boring. I've tried running laps of the cargo hold and it didn't work out."

"Personally, if I'm looking for something to do, I like to read," Ro said, "I haven't read much lately. I haven't had time to. When I was younger I stole a datapad and I would read whenever I was cold, lonely, hungry…I read a lot then. It was a way to escape the reality that I was in."

"So how come you stopped reading?"

"I had to face reality eventually. Every time that I would escape into fantasy, it would become harder to get back to reality."

"A lot of times it is easier to run from reality than to face it."

Rin started cleaning up and putting away the pipes and staff. When he reached down to pick up the pipes, Ro could see more of the scar. It looked like it came from a blaster.

"How did you get that scar on your shoulder?" she asked him, "It looks like it was a blaster wound."

"That's because it was from a blaster."

"What happened?"

Rin looked at her as if her question was strange. "The same way most people get a blaster wound. I was shot."

"Why were you shot?"

"Well, when you have fifty or more trained soldiers shooting at you, someone is bound to have a lucky shot."

"A lucky shot? That looks more than just a lucky shot."

"They hit me. That was pretty lucky."

"You are a strange person."

Rin shrugged. "I know. Is that my shirt you have?"


	10. Chapter 10: A not so simple inspection

Chapter 10: A not so simple inspection

"Twenty three, I win!" Ro said as she collected the pot that consisted of nuts and bolts that they found on the ship, "Wow, you are really are terrible at Sabacc."

"I'm just luring you into a false sense of security. Just wait until I make my move," Rin told her.

"Really, because you have lost every game and you have two washers and a wingnut left. Dave is doing better than you are."

"Yeah, I noticed."

R5 rocked back and forth and knocked the table. She and Ro were doing the best. Dave was only doing slightly better than him and that was because he didn't understand the concept of bluffing.

"How is R5 doing so well?" Rin asked, "She doesn't have hands."

"I'm holding the cards for her," Ro answered.

"So you're cheating for her?"

"I am not cheating. You boys just can't play."

Dave dealt out the next hand. Rin tapped Ro on her shoulder with his tail to get her to look away from her cards.

"Now who's cheating?" she said never looking up from her cards.

The round continued and Rin was all in. He had to win the pot to stay in the game. He might be able to win with the hand that he had. Maybe it was time for better cheating.

"Twenty one," Ro announced as she laid her cards on the table, "Beat that."

"I am out," Dave laid his cards on the table.

Ro laid R5's cards down for her and the droid rocked back and forth.

"Twenty two. Good girl," Ro patted R5 on the head.

Rin was about the lay his cards down when an alert sounded in the cockpit.

"What's that?" Ro asked.

"We're getting a communication in," Rin answered. He got up and laid his cards down. "Twenty three. I guess I win."

Ro studied his cards for a moment before following him up to the cockpit.

Rin answered the call. There was static for a moment but it soon cleared and a man's voice crackled through the speakers.

" _Transport 8565, this in Cruiser 314. You will be passing through sector 20161016. You are ordered to stop at the coordinates sent for inspection_."

Rin went to answer the call but Ro stopped him. "What are you doing?" she demanded, "That's the Empire!"

"I know. That's why I'm calling them back," Rin answered, "It's just an inspection. They're nothing to be worried about. I usually get one every couple runs."

Ro hesitantly let him respond to the Empire's call. "Cruiser 314, this is Transport 8565. We will be at the coordinates in twenty minutes."

" _Acknowledged_." The line was closed.

"You're actually going through with the inspection?" Ro asked him.

"Yeah. It's less trouble than avoiding them. Besides, the inspections are only a trouble if you have something to hide."

"You do have something to hide!"

"I've never had any problems from them. They mostly look for smugglers and to make sure that the ship meets the safety standards," Rin told her, "I have to go get ready. Don't look so worried. We'll be fine."

Rin left the cockpit but Ro stayed. She sat in the pilot's chair and brought her knees close to her chin. Rin might not have been worried about the inspection but she was. She was tempted to take the controls and run from the Empire. But Rin would not want that. He said that they would be fine. Hopefully they would be.

Rin came back almost twenty minutes later with the powder back on his face as well as his gloves and big coat.

"I was just getting used to seeing the real you," Ro said when she saw him.

"Well I don't mind you knowing. I'm not too keen about the Empire knowing about me," he sat down next to her, "Okay, during the inspection, you cannot mention anything about Dave. I'm not exactly allowed to have him. Dave is safe and they won't find him where he is. You also can't mention anything about me. Do you understand?"

Ro nodded.

"Good. And if anyone asks, you've been working here for a month. Got that?"

She nodded again.

He gave her a reassuring smile. "Don't worry. Everything will be fine. We will be on our way in under an hour."

Ro wished that she could have Rin's confidence going into this. She didn't feel that everything was going to be fine. She should have told Rin when she had the chance.

Rin brought the ship out of hyperspace. His confidence faded when he saw the Star Destroyer waiting for them.

"Ro, what did you do?" he asked quietly. There was something that changed in his voice. He was serious. He was a little intimidating.

"What do you mean? You said this was just an inspection."

"Star Destroyers do not do inspections on cargo ships. They are looking for something or someone. So I ask again, what did you do?"

"I didn't do anything!" she insisted.

There was a darkness than was coming from Rin. It felt like the air pressure in cockpit was increasing. He was mad. She had betrayed him.

"Did you tell the Empire about me? No. It was nothing like that. You stole something from them. Back on the docks, it was you that caused the commotion. The Stormtroopers were after you. What did you steal?"

Ro felt herself compelled to tell the truth. "Alright. After you saved me from Dagger, I went back out and tried to lift more wallets. I grabbed a bag from an Imperial Officer. The Stormtroopers chased me and I hid in your ship. I don't know what was in the bag."

Rin calmed down and the pressure in the cabin decreased. "Where is this bag now?"

"I hid it in the cargo hold."

"Go get it."

Ro did as she was told and ran down to the cargo hold.

Rin struggled to control himself. He had not felt that way since on Drachma. The anger and betrayal. But she had not betrayed him. He could feel the darkness in him. He wondered if Ro could also feel it also. Behind him, a tin mug that he had left in the cockpit had been crushed. He had to get his temper under control before they were boarded by the Empire.

The Empire sent him instructions on how to dock up to them. Ro returned with the bag just as he was about to dock with the Star Destroyer. Rin took the bag and searched through it. There were a couple credits, a bottle of water and a datapad. They must be after whatever was on the datapad. Whatever was on it was worth enough that the Empire would send a Star Destroyer after it. He turned on the datapad and scrolled through the files. It looked like mostly logistical work. There was an order form for a new office chair. That wasn't worth all this.

The ship lurched as it completed docking. They were running out of time.

Finally a file name caught his eye. The file had one word as the title. Keket. He opened the file but it was encrypted. Why would an Imperial officer have a file with the name of his home planet? He couldn't let the Empire find this datapad until he found out what was going on.

"When you stole this, did the officer see your face?" she asked.

"No. At least I don't think so."

"Good. Get down to the air lock and greet them," Rin ordered, "I will be with you shortly."

"Where are you going?"

"Hiding this. Now go."

Ro did as she was told and headed for the airlock. The airlock was in the cargo hold. Ro saw Rin disappear somewhere in the cargo hold but she didn't know where. Her heart was pounding. Rin had scared her but he was nothing compared to the Empire.

The door started to open. Rin landed next to her from somewhere. Ro looked up but she couldn't see where Rin had come from. She looked over at him and noticed that just underneath his jaw some of the powder had rubbed off.

"Rin…"

"It'll be alright."

"No, but-"

The door fully open and ten Stormtroopers rushed into the cargo hold, blasters raised.

"Hands where we can see them," one of the troopers ordered.

Rin did as he was told and Ro followed. Maybe no one would notice the missing powder. They ordered them off the ship and onto the Star Destroyer. Rin made a note of remembering every turn that they made just in case. They were led to a large hangar that was quite bright. Three officers were waiting for them. They were two women and a man in black uniforms.

"I imagine you are wondering what you are doing here?" The woman with short, dark hair asked. She seemed to be the one in charge.

"I'm guessing that this is not a simple inspection," Rin answered. Ro was surprised how casual he sounded.

"It is not," the woman answered, "We are looking for a thief. The thief stole something from an officer on Kejimkujik space port, just as your ship was taking off."

"Well I haven't seen any thief," Rin told her.

"Well, even so, we will be conducting a thorough search of your ship," the dark haired woman said.

The other woman, with red hair tied in a tight bun had a datapad in her hands. "I am assuming that you are the owner of this ship? Rin Selleck?"

"That's correct."

The red haired consulted her data pad again. "It says here that you are the only crew member other than an old R5 astromech. When did you pick up the extra hand?"

"A month ago. I hired her at Dalk."

"And what is your name young lady?"

"Ro Wint-erfell."

"Ro Winterfell?" the red haired officer repeated.

"Yes, ma'am."

"Do you have identification to confirm your identity?"

"Ahh…"

"Did you leave it in your room again?" Rin asked her casually. He found that it was best if he acted like casual about everything. If he was too serious than it could draw attention. "I'm sorry about that. She is always forgetting stuff. I guess that is what I get for hiring a kid, right?"

The red haired woman looked at Ro to Rin and back. "Make sure that you have it submitted as soon as possible."

The red haired officer continued to ask questions to Rin about the logistics of the ship. Rin answered them easily as they were the usual set of questions that were asked during an inspection. During this time the male officer didn't say anything. He was just leaning against some crates, studying Rin intently. The man was older than the women. He was in his forties while the dark haired woman was around thirty and the red haired one looked not much older than her was.

"And how many crates did you pick up in Kejimkujik?"

"A hundred and seventy six," Rin answered.

The red haired offer was about to ask another question but she was interrupted by the entrance of five Stormtroopers and another officer.

"The entire ship has been swept," the officer reported, "There was no sign of the stolen item."

"Thank you Lieutenant," the dark haired officer said.

"Am I clear to go now?" Rin asked, "I have a schedule to keep."

"You may be on your way, Mr. Selleck," the dark haired officer answered.

"Just one moment," the male officer finally spoke, "I have a few questions that I would like to ask Mr. Selleck."

"Fire away."

The man stood up and walked over to Rin so that he was uncomfortably close to him. The man was just as tall as Rin and he could feel the man's hot breath on his face. "Working on a cargo ship, would you call this a dirty job?"

"At times," The man had spotted the spot on Rin's jaw where the powder had rubbed off.

"I see. Is it customary for cargo pilots to wear more makeup than my wife?"

The man reached up and with one finger whipped the powder from Rin's cheek to reveal the black and red skin underneath.

"Would you believe that I have a skin condition?" Rin asked quietly.

"I would not," the man stepped back and Stormtroopers surrounded Rin, "Take him to an interrogation cell. I want to know how much he knows."

"Know about what?" Rin demanded.

"Don't act like you don't know Yokios. I know what you are after. Sergeant, sweep his ship again. He must have it. You two, search him."

"Ro, get ready to run," Rin whispered.

Two Stormtroopers approached Rin, blasters raised. Rin spun around and leapt over the troopers. He grabbed a blaster with his tail and used the trooper as a human shield as blaster blots started flying. With a wave of his hand he levitated the troops by Ro and hurled them at the other troopers. Ro ran off away from the troopers. Rin leapt at the next Stormtrooper and knocked him down while shooting at another. The Stormtroopers were slow to react as he moved through their ranks taking them down. They were not as good as Clones.

He had taken down twelve Stormtroopers but more kept coming. He would have to make a run for it soon. He pushed several crates at the troopers. There was a clearing and he was going to take it. There was a blinding light and Rin was disoriented. He couldn't see. There was a blow to the back of his head and everything went dark.

Rin woke to a splitting headache. There was dried blood in his hair and down his neck. He was sitting on a metal chair laid over a metal table. His hands were bound together and chained to the centre of the table. He tried to open his eyes but there was a blinding light and he couldn't open his eyes. If he couldn't see than he would just have to rely on his other senses.

The air smelled clean and sterile. The Empire liked to be clean. There was a faint buzzing from the light above him. He guessed that the light was on stronger than it was usually. He knew that he was in a small room and that he was alone. He could still feel Ro's presence on the ship. She was scared but he didn't think that she had been caught.

There was another presence that he could feel on the ship. He didn't know who it was but whoever they were was strong. There were multiple of them. It was like there were Jedi on board or other Yokios but it wasn't either of those. They were dark, powerful and ambitious. After the destruction of the Jedi Order, why would there be Force users on board?

A door slid open and the man from before walked into the room. The man smelled of cologne and bad aftershave. There was a scraping on the floor as another chair was being pulled out. The man sat down and adjusted his position.

"You're finally awake I see. I was beginning to wonder if you ever would. I hope that you don't mind that I have the lights on high. I find that with my age I am having a harder time seeing in low light."

"I think that you know my answer to that."

The man chuckled. "Yes. Your people really do not like the light. Well I guess that is what happens when you live on a dark world."

"What do you want?"

"I believe that I am the one asking the questions Mr. Selleck. Or do you prefer Slovak?"

"You know who I am. I believe that you have me at a disadvantage."

"Oh how rude of me. I am Commander Pierce. I am the second in command of this Star Destroyer," the man typed something on a datapad, "I must say that you had quite a reputation. You joined the Jedi order when you were fourteen and just over a year later you were a Commander with the 507th clone battalion. You weren't there for a year but you managed to make quite a name for yourself. The Stealth Squad was very successful. Unfortunately you do have the deaths of twenty one clone troopers on your record. And I guess that we can add the deaths of five of my men."

"Oh I'm sure that you've done worse."

"I highly doubt that."

"Why are you even here?" Rin asked.

"I want to know what you have done with the datapad that you stole. Where is it?"

"What makes you think that I even have it?"

"Your ship was the only one to leave Kejimkujik space port when the datapad was stolen. The space port was searched and the datapad was nowhere to be found. Therefore, someone took it off world," Commander Pierce explained, "I believe that was you. Or possibly Miss Winters."

"You mean Winterfell."

"No. I mean Rosalie Winters. Don't think that we couldn't find out who she was either. She has a record for petty theft," the Commander said, "What I need from you is to know where that datapad is and who you are working for?"

"I'm mostly my own boss. But I guess if you want to get technical, I work under the Nebula and Sons Shipping Company. All the paperwork is on my ship," Rin answered, "As for that datapad, I have no idea where it is. Maybe whoever lost it just needs to keep track of their things better."

Commander Pierce slapped Rin across the face. Rin knew that Imperial Officers liked to be in control. Commander Pierce thought that he was interrogating Rin but it was more like the other way around.

"What was on that data pad that is so important?" Rin asked, "And you hit like a girl."

"That is none of your concern." The Commander stood and started to walk around the room. The hairs on the back of Rin's neck stood up when Pierce was behind him. "You must have someone supporting you to try something like this. Miss Winter's father led a rebel cell years ago. Did she put you in contact with someone?"

"I haven't been put in contact with anyone," Rin said, "Why would someone need help to steal a datapad?"

"You will see. Or maybe, no you won't." The door slid open.

"Where are you going?"

"I can see that you are not going to be very useful to me. Perhaps Miss Winters will be more forthcoming."

"Are you going to kill me?"

"Not personally no. But I have a number of personnel on board that their specialty is taking care of people like you."

" _Commander Pierce, report to the bridge,_ " the PA system crackled, " _Commander Pierce to the bridge_."

The Commander sighed. "What is it this time? I will deal with you later."

The door slid close and the Commander was gone.

Now would be a good time to escape. Rin tried to move but the restraints holding his hands to the table where strong. This would be easier if he would see but the lights were too bright. As if someone had heard his thoughts, the lights turned off. Rin was glad to finally open his eyes but he found that he was seeing spots. Who turned off the lights?

Rin focused on the binders and they shattered. There were some noises outside and then the thud of someone hitting the floor. The doors slid open and Ro was standing there with a Stormtrooper at her feet.

"I thought I told you to run," he said.

"You did. But you didn't say to where or that I couldn't come back," she replied, "Now do you want to get out of here or do you want me to leave you in the cell."

"Don't get smart. Where are Dave and R5?"

"How do you know that it's not just me? I could have knocked the guard out and hacked the PA system."

"Nice try."

Ro sighed. "Dave is scouting ahead and R5 is on our ship and is plugged into the Destroyer's computer."

Dave appeared from a side corridor. He was holding a blaster in his hand that he had acquired from a Stormtrooper. "The hallway is clear. I calculate that we will reach heavy resistance as we try to get closer to the ship."

"How close is the ship?"

"We will need to go down two levels and through six sectors of the ship," Dave replied.

"So, far."

"We need to get going."

Ro put a hand on Rin's arm. "Wait. Um, I want to say that, I'm sorry. I'm sorry that I got you into this mess. I'm sorry that I stole that datapad. I'm sorry that I got you exposed to the Empire. I'm sorry for everything."

"Ro, it's alright. I know that you never meant for any of this to happen," Rin told her, "It would have happened sooner or later. It might not be all bad."

She kept her eyes down and watched her feet. "I would understand if you wanted to kick me out when we get out of this."

"Then who's going to fix things on the ship? My mother used to say that everything happens for a reason. I think that you were meant to stowaway on my ship. I am willing to keep you on if you want."

Ro finally lifted her head. "Really."

"Yeah. But after we get out of this, we need to take you shopping so you will stop stealing my shirts."

"You think we're going to get out of here?"

"I know we are. C'mon."

Rin and Ro followed Dave through the series of corridors back to the ship. Dave was getting instructions from R5 so they were able to avoid most of the patrols and the cameras. They had to disarm three Stormtroopers that they encountered. Rin was able to take them out quietly and they stashed them in nearby rooms. No one had noticed that Rin was missing from his cell yet.

Rin couldn't help feel like he was being hunted by the Clone Troopers again. There were so many of them and their uniforms were so similar. He was remembering his tail wrapped around the clone's neck and he started to feel nauseous. He had killed another five men a few hours ago. It scared him how easily he was able to do that.

"Are you alright?" Ro whispered to him.

"Yeah, I'm fine."

"You look like your about to be sick. Did they do something to you?"

"It's more like what I did to them," Rin muttered under his breath.

Dave motioned for them to stop. They were back at the hangar that they were in before. It was only a short way from there to the ship. There were Stormtroopers patrolling the area. The room was wide open and it would be difficult to make it across.

"I'll go first," Rin said, "Dave, make your way to my position when I give you the signal. Ro, follow Dave."

Rin slowly crept across the floor. The Stormtrooper closest to him was not looking in his direction and the others were blocked by crates and equipment. There would be no hiding from the Stormtrooper in front of him whenever he decided to turn around. There would be no way that he could miss Rin. Knocking the trooper out would be noisy. Their damn armour was too loud. Rin would have to be forced to do something that he really didn't want to do.

A siren started to sound through the ship.

" _Attention. Prisoner escape from Interrogation room B. All Inquisitors respond. Subject is extremely dangerous. Code Black_."

Rin didn't know what Inquisitors were but he had a feeling that he didn't want to find out. The Stormtrooper spun around and was face to face with Rin. Rin forced his blaster from him and shot the trooper. That drew the attention of the Stormtroopers. They began firing on him and Rin returned fire. One went down and then another. A blaster bolt missed his head by inches. Dave took down three other Stormtroopers.

"So much for sneaking out of here," Rin called to Dave.

"It is advised that we advance quickly to the ship."

Rin looked back and Ro was still in the hall. She looked scared. She had probably never been in a battle before.

"C'mon!" he called to her.

She didn't move.

Rin ran to her, grabbed her hand and pulled her out. A Stormtrooper tried to hit them but missed and was shot by Rin. They reached the other side of the hangar and ducked into the hallway. Dave was already there and laying down cover fire.

The corridor was clear but it was not going to stay that way for long. Rin was still holding onto Ro and pulled her along as they raced to the ship. The airlock was guarded by two guards. Dave shot the both of them as they ran onto the ship.

"R5, take off. Now!" Rin yelled as they got onto their own ship.

She squawked over the intercom.

"I don't care if it's not safe. Just get us out if here!"

The ship lurched as it pulled away from the Star Destroyer. Part of the airlock broke off from their ship. Rin rushed up to the cockpit. R5 was there plugged into the ship steering it. Outside the window TIE fighters were being released from the Star Destroyer.

"Get us into hyperspace."

R5 beeped to say that they were ready. Rin pulled the lever and the stars outside stretched out. The familiar swirl of blue light appeared. They were safe.


	11. Chapter 11: What happened on Drachma?

Chapter 11: What happened on Drachma?

Rin sunk into the pilot's chair as he was hit with a wave of exhaustion. The blaster was still in his hand. He threw it to the ground as though it was burning hot. He had done it again. He had killed more people. He knew that if he hadn't, then he would be captured and probably killed. But did he really have to kill that many? He felt like he was going to be sick.

Ro appeared in to doorway. She looked pale but was looking better than she was before.

"How are you doing?" she asked him.

"Alright," he told her although he did not believe it himself.

R5 detached from the ship's computer and nuzzled up against his leg. Rin patted her on the head. "Hey girl. I missed you too."

"She was worried about you, you know," Ro said, "We all were."

"I know. Thank you for coming for me," he rubbed R5's head, "Hey girl. Do you think that you can decrypt the datapad for me?"

R5 beeped happily and rocked back and forth. She rolled past Ro and down the hallway.

"So what are we going to do now?"

"I'm going to drop you off at the next port. You should get as far away from me as possible. I'll have to get rid of the ship and the droids. You can have them if you'd like. I'll go underground. Try to move on and hide from the Empire."

"You're not leaving me!" Ro cried, "The Empire is after me as well."

"I know. But for your own safety, its better if you were nowhere near me," Rin told her, "I don't want to put you in danger."

"Why? Five minutes ago you said that I could stay. Now you want me to leave? Is it because you're a Jedi?"

"I'm not a Jedi. Not anymore."

"What are you trying to protect me from?" Ro asked. She was starting to get upset with him.

"Me." Rin said quietly.

"You? I don't understand?"

Rin wanted to tell her it was because he considered himself a killer but he couldn't bring himself to tell her. Everyone close to him was dead. He didn't want to be responsible for Ro's death. The images of when he killed the clones came back to him and it made his stomachs to flips.

"You wouldn't understand," he told her.

Rin stood and pushed by her. He went down the hall to the kitchen. He turned the water on in the sink and splashed water into his face. It washed off the remainder of the powder on his face and helped his nausea.

Ro had followed him. "What wouldn't I understand?"

"Ro, you don't know what I have been through or what I've done," Rin said into the sink, "You are better off away from me."

"I know what happened to the Jedi."

"Congratulations, most don't. But you couldn't begin to imagine what it was like. You have no idea what really happened."

"I know that whatever happened to the clones was instantaneous. They suddenly turned on the Jedi and systematically executed them with no apparent reason. I know that they fired without mercy at Jedi who were not even armed."

Rin raised himself from the sink. "How did you know that?"

There were tears in Ro's eyes. "My mother. She was up in her cruiser when it happened. She saw as the clones killed her sister on the planet's surface. Before she tried to fight back, she was able to send a message to my father and I."

"Your mother was Maya Snow."

Ro nodded. "Aurora was my aunt. I knew that you were familiar. When I saw you on the Star Destroyer, I knew. I remember my mother and Aurora telling me about you."

"Look, Ro, I'm sorry for your loss. But that doesn't change the fact that you are in danger whenever you're around me. I'm not who you think I am. I'm not some noble Jedi. I'm not someone that you should be around."

"I don't believe that. You have been helping me ever since we met. You helped me from Dagger after I tried to steal from you. You didn't have to do that. You let me stay on the ship when I snuck on board. You even defended me against the Empire at your own risk. You're still a Jedi even if you refuse to admit it."

Rin turned his back to her. "I'm no Jedi. The Jedi are dead. If I was a Jedi, I would be dead as well."

"What happened to you?" Ro asked, "What happened when the clones attacked?"

Rin didn't say anything.

"Rin, what happened? What happened when Aurora died?"

"What do you want me to tell you?" Rin snapped, "Do you want me to say that I was too late to save her! That I knew that something bad was about to happen but couldn't stop it! Or that I saw the order being given and the troops that we considered as friends betray us. Or that after I saw Aurora get killed, I cut down every trooper that hurt her without mercy. What do you want from me?!"

Ro stood there in shock. Her mouth moved but no words came out.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to snap at you like that."

Ro took a deep breath. "That must have been the first time that you've talked about that. I know that I could never understand what it felt like, being betrayed like that. But maybe it would help if you told me."

Rin turned his back to her and leaned over the sink again. His head was spinning as he was remembering that night. Ro was like her mother and her aunt. They had the ability to be very comforting and someone that he could talk to. He used to talk to Aurora and Admiral Snow about his uncertainties, whenever he was homesick. He talked to them a lot. But he wasn't sure if he could share this with Ro. Dave was right, he needed to talk to someone.

"It wasn't the betrayal that haunts me the most," he said quietly, "It was the fact that I killed them that haunts me."

"Weren't you defending yourself?" Ro asked softly.

Rin shook his head. "I attacked them. After I saw them kill Aurora, I attacked them. I didn't even think about it. I just did it. I could have run. I didn't have to confront them but I did. To this day I don't know why I did it. What frightens me is that it was so easy. It was so easy to do it. Even back on the Star Destroyer. It was so easy to do it again. You must think that I'm some horrible person."

"I think that you were angry," she paused, "When I was nine, I saw my father kill a man. We had been on the run for a while so I don't think that it was the first time. But it was the first time that he did it in front of me. This man was trying to take me, I can only imagine for what. My father killed him to protect me. I was horrified that he did that. I remember being so angry at him. He didn't try to defend himself to me. He even told me that he would do it again if it meant protecting me. Does that make him a horrible person? I don't know. But I understand why he did that. I know that he never wanted to do it."

"I never wanted to hurt anyone. But they were my friends."

"Who were no longer your friends when they decided to go against you."

"I don't think that they were acting on their own free will," Rin said. He straightened up and turned back to face Ro.

"Why because they pretended to be your friends?"

Rin shook his head. "They weren't pretending. They were our friends. I saw Palpatine give the order. This Order 66 was some kind of trigger that caused the clones to turn against us."

"Palpatine? The Emperor? But why would do that? Why would that even be a thing in the clones?"

"I don't know. But I saw him give the order. I didn't know that it was him at the time. He had a cloak on with the hood up. After I came out of hiding I heard what had happened to him with the Jedi and pieced it together."

"That man always gave me the creeps."

"Good, it wasn't just me."

"What happened to you after you escaped the clones?"

Rin sighed and sat down at the table. Ro joined him. "I hid in the mountains of Drachma for eight months. I had barely any contact with the world. I would steal supplies that I needed at night from small villages. The first month was the worse. I was shot when I was getting away and the wound got infected. I nearly died from that. Then I caught pneumonia and nearly died again.

"After eight months I made my way to a space port and stowed away on a cargo ship like you did. I hid in the cargo hold and they never knew that I was there. Well, they noticed when they saw that some of their stuff was missing. It was quite a shock to hear about the Empire. It was a greater shock when I saw how much power that they already had. I tried to earn money and keep a low profile but I quickly learned that people did not react well to how I looked. I would have the Empire on my tail so fast. So that was when I decided to hide my appearance. I worked several odd jobs until I was able to buy this ship. Sad thing is I just finished the last of the payments on this thing and now I can't use it anymore."

"You never thought about going back home?" Ro asked.

"I couldn't even if I wanted to," he replied, "My people aren't big fans of outsiders. I made quite a scene when I tried to convince the chief that the Republic was trying to help us. Long story short, I decided to leave with the Republic and I was essentially told to never come back. I was banished."

"Couldn't you just go to the other side of the planet? They would never know that you were there."

"No. As soon as they would see a ship land I would be in trouble. It wouldn't be worth it."

"So you've just been out here all alone."

Rin shrugged. "I wasn't completely alone. I have Dave and R5. I know it's not the same as having actual people, but they help."

"You have me now."

"You still what to stay on? I haven't scared you away?"

Ro shook her head. "You couldn't get rid of me even if you to."

"We're going to be on the run."

"How is that any different than what I've been doing for most of my life?"

R5 rolled into the room with Dave behind her. He was holding the datapad and she was squawking gleefully.

"R5 has been able to crack the encryption on the datapad," Dave announced.

Rin took the datapad from the droid. "Good girl. Let's see what you found."

Rin looked through the files until he found the one that was called Keket. It was a memorandum about a weapons test on Keket. The Empire was testing the effectiveness of something called the Inquisitors.

"What are Inquisitors?" Ro asked as she was reading over his shoulder.

"I don't know," Rin answered, "When we were escaping there was a call for Inquisitors to go to the cell I was in. But I have no idea what they are."

Rin scrolled through the memorandum some more. The Empire wanted the test the Inquisitors against the Yokios. But why? He found the answer at the bottom of the document.

" _If the test on Keket proves successful, then the Inquisitors will be dispatched to eradicate the remaining Jedi_ ," Rin read aloud.

"The Inquisitors are Jedi hunters? Why would the Empire test Jedi hunters on Keket?"

"Because my people are the closest things to being Jedi without actually being Jedi. We can use the Force like the Jedi. It was how we were able to defend ourselves against the Separatists," Rin explained, "They must think that if they can defeat us then they can go up against any Jedi."

"But how are they going to do that? If the Separatists couldn't beat you, what makes the Empire think that they can?" Ro asked.

"Wait, on the Star Destroyer, I felt something there," Rin said, "It was strange. It was similar to Jedi and Yokios but different. These Inquisitors might be using the Force."

"If the Inquisitors are Force wielders, than it is possible that they could decimate Keket with the help of Stormtroopers," Dave added.

"We have to do something!" Ro exclaimed.

"Like what?" Rin demanded, "It's just us against an army. What can we do?"

"We could go there and help."

"I can't go back!"

"But they're your people!"

"Who told me to leave and never come back! I can't go."

"Can't? Or won't?"

Rin started at her. "I can't go back there."

Rin got up to leave but Dave blocked his path.

"Out of my way Dave."

"No," the droid responded.

"Dave."

"There is nothing stopping you from returning to help you people other than yourself," Dave said, "You left Keket to try and find yourself and to prove that you deserved the cato on your arm. You do not feel that you live up to what the cato means."

"Shut up."

"What does it mean?" Ro asked.

"Nothing," Rin answered.

"On the contrary, the marking on his arm and torso predicts that he will become a great warrior."

"I never told you that," Rin hissed.

"Yes you did. Although you were quite drunk at the time."

"The catos are supposed to predict stuff about yourself?" Ro asked.

Rin sighed. "It's just silly superstition. It's nothing."

"If it's nothing than you should have no trouble going back to Keket," she said.

"I can't," he told her.

"You know, my mother used to say that was thousands of worlds that are aware of the war but very few did much about it. Now this could be because they didn't have the means to get involved in the war or because they just didn't care," Ro said, "I don't believe that you fall in any of the categories. These are your people that we are talking about here. You have a chance to make a difference. So don't let some superstition or banishment stop you from doing what is right."

Rin turned back to face her. "You're right. It's just superstition. There is nothing more to it. R5, plot a course to Keket. It's time to go home."


	12. Chapter 12: Return to Keket

Chapter 12: Return to Keket

The ship emerged out of hyperspace above Keket. The planet looked just like Rin had left it. It was a beautiful planet of black, brown and purple. It had been ten years since he had seen his home world. He had changed so much but it didn't look like it had changed a bit.

"Is that Keket?" Ro asked when she saw it.

"Yup. It doesn't look like anything has changed."

Ro pointed to something off in the distance. "Uh, it looks like some things had changed."

There was change to the planet. The Star Destroyer was there. Rin manoeuvred the ship so they were separated by the planet.

"What are we going to do?" Ro asked, "The Empire is already here."

"We'll have to go down to the surface and see where they need help."

"Can we really do anything against, that?"

"I guess that we'll find out."

Rin steered the ship down through the atmosphere. They cleared the clouds and the fields and forests stretched out before them. It was peaceful there. The Empire had not made it to this part of the planet. Rin wasn't sure where he was. He didn't recognize the fields or the crops. They were far away from where he grew up.

"Did you grow up around here?" Ro asked.

"No. But I grew up in a place very similar."

"Aren't you worried that they might shoot us down?"

Rin laughed. "Shoot us down. With what?"

R5 beeped from behind them.

"She found the Empire!" Rin announced.

They flew past more fields and forests towards the Empire. The landscape was starting to get more familiar. They were closer to his home. In a few minutes they had covered thousands of kilometres.

"Is that the sun?" Ro asked pointing at the horizon.

"No. The sunlight doesn't reach here."

The horizon was getting lighter as they got closer. It was a yellow glow that did resemble the sun. When they got closer they saw that it was fires. The forests were on fire. Imperial forces were forcing the people out of the forests. They couldn't hide there like he had. The Empire had also come equipped with massive spotlights.

Below them, Rin spotted a group of Yokios trying to defend themselves against the Empire. There was someone down there with a red lightsabre.

"Is that a lightsabre?" Ro asked.

"Yup."

"Please tell me that you have yours."

"Sorry, no."

"What? You were a Jedi! How do you not have a lightsabre?"

Rin shrugged. "I destroyed it, years ago. I was on the run from the Empire. I destroyed everything that I had that connected me to the Republic."

"We're doomed."

Rin got up and left the bridge. "R5, set the ship down close."

"Where are you going?" Ro asked.

"Outside. Stay with R5."

He disappeared down the hall leaving Ro on the bridge. Dave was waiting for him by the cargo hold doors. Dave had the blaster that he had taken from the Stormtroopers in his hands. The sight reminded Rin that Dave was still a battle droid.

"You're going to want to be very careful down there," Rin advised him.

"I still have my tactical programing from the war. I will be fine. The Stormtroopers are not very formidable."

"It's not the Stormtroopers that I'm worried about," Rin said, "The last time that my people saw a droid was when the Separatist Army was invading. They are not going to react kindly to you. Just stay close to me."

"Understood."

Rin pressed the button for the intercom. "R5, open the cargo hold doors."

She squawked over the intercom.

"Yes I know this isn't safe. I'll be alright."

She beeped and squawked again.

"You were talking to Dave? Actually never mind. I do not want to know."

The cargo hold doors slowly creaked open. Below he could see the ones with the red lightsabres and Stormtroopers surrounding a small group of Yokios. Rin assumed that the red blades belonged to the Inquisitors. The adults were prepared to fight them and try to protect five children that were huddled in the centre of them. They didn't stand a chance.

Rin took several steps back and ran out the cargo hold doors. At first he felt weightless but then he started falling towards the ground. He angled himself so that he was aimed for the group of Yokios. The wind tried to push him off course but never did.

The ground was coming up fast. No matter how many times he had done this sort of thing during the war, he always had a moment of panic when he really thought that he was going to hit the ground. This time was no exception. The panic passed as he remembered what he was supposed to do. He flipped himself around so that he was going down feet first. He used the Force to slow his descent.

Rin landed on the shoulders of man with the red lightsabre and crashed to the ground. The others around him diverted their attention from the Yokios and onto him. He forced the lightsabre into his own hand and started spinning it. It felt so natural and it was like no time had passed. Stormtroopers started to fire on him. He easily deflected the bolts back to them. Two Inquisitors attacked him but were no match for him.

The Inquisitors were dressed head to toe in black with the crest of the Empire on their shoulders. They had some kind of helmet on that covered their faces. They were skilled with a lightsabre and the Force but they were not in the same league as Rin. He let the Force guide him as he defended himself and his people from them.

Dave crashed into the ground ten metres away from him creating a large crater. He was folded up into a ball. He unfolded himself and started firing upon the Stormtroopers.

Another Inquisitor tried and failed to take Rin. The other Yokios started to fight back against the Inquisitors.

"Fall back!" a tall thin male Inquisitor called.

The remaining three Inquisitors obeyed and so did the Stormtroopers. They had won. But only temporarily. The Inquisitors would return with back up.

Rin studied the lightsabre in his hand. It was double bladed and the two ends were connected by a circle. He had never seen a design like it before. All of the Inquisitors had lightsabres that were similar in design. It looked like the blades might be able to spin. He did not know how that feature would be useful.

"It's one of them!" One of the adult Yokios called out.

Rin looked up to see that they were starting to gain up on Dave. One waved their hand and Dave started to float in the air.

"No!" Rin cried out. He rushed to his droid and got between them, "He's alright! He's with me!"

"And who are you?" A woman asked him, "Who are you siding with this monster?"

"He's not a monster. He's my friend. We're trying to help."

"But _who_ are you?" she asked again.

"Rin?" said a man from within the crowd. The man stepped forward and Rin did not recognize him at first. He was a little shorter than Rin but was stockier. His hair was perfectly combed back and made him look cool. He finally remembered who it was in front of him. It had been ten years but he could not forget how he had envied having that cool hair.

"Koda? Is that you?"

"You know him?" one of the men asked Koda.

"Yeah, we were kids together. But, but you left. How, or why are you back?"

"I came to help. The Empire-"

"Wait. What's the Empire? Why are you helping this thing?"

Rin glanced back at Dave who was still struggling under the invisible hand that was holding him. "He's not the bad guy anymore. He's my friend. The Empire is the real danger here. Not him."

"Why should we believe you?" Koda asked, "You left us with the people that just attacked us. We were told that _he_ was the bad guy. Now you're telling us that, that thing is trying to help us and the men in white are now the bad guys?"

"Um, well, yeah. It's complicated," Rin stammered, "But the guys in white are not the ones that I left with. They're different. Just trust me and let him go."

Koda looked up to Dave and back to Rin. It was clear that he was trying to decide what to do with the droid.

"We can't trust him," an elderly woman said. Rin thought that she was one of the town elders, "He left with the outsiders. He turned his back on us. He is now an outsider. He cannot be trusted."

Many of the others in the crowd nodded in agreement.

"Wait! No! Would you at least give me a chance to explain. I am trying to help."

"Rin! Are you alright?" Ro called from the trees. She came stumbling out of the woods with R5 close behind her. R5 had a light on but it was not enough that Ro could see with it.

"Ro, stay back!" he yelled.

"Who's she?" Koda demanded.

"He brought another outsider here," the old woman said.

"What is following her?" someone had asked, "It looks like a barrel on wheels."

"Hey!" Ro screamed.

Ro started to rise up in the air as someone in the crowd moved their hands.

"Leave her out of this!" Rin cried, "She's just a kid. We are not here to hurt you. I want to help. Look, Koda. You know me. You used to beat me up for not being able to harvest as much gava fruits as you. We helped each other when the droids invaded."

"That was ten years ago. A lot has changed."

Ro was struggling against the invisible force that was holding her. She was starting to have difficulty breathing.

"Alright! You're right. A lot has changed. I have changed a lot. I have done a lot of things that I am not overly proud of. But I don't believe that you have. She is a fifteen year old girl. I don't think that you would hurt her. Your cato says that you are a protector. Show it!"

Rin's words did not seem to convince Koda or any of the others.

"I am protecting my home," Koda said quietly, "If this is what it takes then so be it."

The grip on Ro started to tighten.

"No!" Rin cried, "Stop! Stop! Koda, you were right. You warned me that no good would come from siding with the Republic," the grip on Ro stopped tightening, "The Republic has fallen. The side that I thought I was helping no longer exists. I didn't know it at the time but I helped create the Empire. It's my fault that they're here. I am trying to make it right. You were right about them. I-I was wrong."

"You mean that?" Koda asked.

"Yes," Rin replied.

Koda seemed to accept that. "Release her," he ordered, "And that thing."

Ro and Dave were released and fell to the ground in a heap. Rin rushed to Ro to check if she was alright.

"Are you alright?" he asked her.

"Fine," she coughed, "Your people really do not like outsiders."

"Tell me about it."

"I can barely see you. I can see figures but I cannot make out faces," she exclaimed, "What's wrong."

Rin smiled. "Nothing is wrong. My people blend into the shadows. The only reason that you can see us is because of the fire. I am actually surprised that you can see that much."

Koda walked up behind them, away from the crowd. "These invaders are much better prepared than last time. What do you know about them? How do we beat them this time?"

Rin stood and turned to face him. "First, you have to trust me. I know that you don't like me but I know how to deal with the Empire better than anyone here."

"There's not going to be anyone coming to help us this time is there?"

Rin shook his head. "We're on our own. So you need to listen to me otherwise we are all dead."

"Daddy!" a child cried. A little boy, around three ran up to Koda, hugged him and hid behind him.

Koda knelt down and picked up his son. "It's alright squirt. What is it?"

"Where's Mommy?" He just wrapped his arms around Koda's neck and buried his face in his shoulder.

"You're a father now," Rin said in disbelief.

"Yeah. A lot of things have changed since you left. I want to protect my son. He has already lost his mother to them. I don't want him to lose me as well."

"Then we should get somewhere sheltered. We are too exposed out in the open. We're close to the northern cliffs aren't we?"

Koda nodded.

"That would be a good place to stay safe. The Empire would not be able to find their way in the caves and mines there."

Koda nodded again. "Alright. I will let the others know."

Koda went back to the other Yokios with his son in his arms. Rin thought that is was so odd seeing Koda as a father. He seemed so young. Rin could not imagine having a child at his age. But in his culture, it was normal for couples to have children young. His own father was eighteen when Reggie had been born.

"A friend of yours?" Ro asked him.

"I'm, not sure. I guess that I could have considered him a friend at one point. Looks like their leaving. Come on," Rin helped Ro to her feet, "Stay close to me. You too Dave and R5. It's best if I kept you away from them."

"I now understand the need for your warning," Dave stated, "It is clear why my fellow droids were unable to conquer this planet. Though with so many this strong with the force, it is strange that they were not ordered to keep trying."

"Maybe they just saw that it was too much effort," Ro suggested.

"Or maybe someone thought that we would have a much better use later on," Rin said, "I would not be surprised if someone had planned all this from the beginning."

They set off with the others to the northern cliffs. Ro and the droids stayed close to Rin at the back of the group. No one really talked much on their way there. There were times that Rin caught some pretty nasty looks from the other Yokios. They were not happy about him being there.

He was beginning to recognize a few of the Yokios that was with them. He was pretty sure that the old woman who was trying to kill Ro was Koda's grandmother. Rin also thought he recognized a couple that had lived on the same street that he did. There was even one of the kids that were with him when they were hiding in the woods. It was a long time ago.

"These northern cliffs that we're going to, are they safe?" Ro asked him after they had been walking for an hour in silence. They were away from the fires and the only night came from the stars. Explosions could still be heard in the distance. A couple times TIE fighters would fly overhead but they never caused any problems for them.

"Um, I'm not sure," Rin answered, "When I was a kid, everyone used to hang out around there even though our parents told us not to. I have never heard about anything happening there. Though my brother swore that they were haunted."

"Haunted by what?"

He shrugged. "I don't know. I think that he was just trying to scare me."

Despite it being warm, Ro still shivered.

"Are you alright?" Rin asked.

"I'll be fine."

"Watch your step."

Ro tripped over a root that was sticking out of the ground. She let out a small yelp and Rin caught her before she landed on her face.

"Ugh. I can barely see a thing. I can't even see you," she complained, "Are you sure we can't turn on a light?"

"Yes. We can't risk having a light on. It would give away our position to the Empire."

"And you lived here in the dark? I couldn't imagine it."

"It's not that bad. We've adapted to the dark. This whole world has."

"Do you really believe what you said to Koda? Do you really think that you made a mistake by joining the Republic?"

"I don't know," he told her, "There are times that I think that my life would have been better if I had stayed. It would have been simpler."

"You didn't help form the Empire you know."

"Are you sure? The war was just a way for the Empire to come on top. The Republic and the Separatists were just being used. Neither side would have won the war."

Up front, the group stopped to rest. They were in what looked like an overgrown gava fruit orchard. There were weeds and tall grass amongst the trees and the trees were wild and untrimmed. The only reason that Rin knew they were in a field was because the trees were in a straight line and all the trees were the same.

There was something familiar about the field. Rin saw that one of the trees had old shards of rock in its trunk.

"Koda," he said as he walked up to his old friend, "Is this Mr. Sato's field?"

"Yeah. Or at least what's left of it."

"What happened here? This was the largest field of gava fruits."

"It fell into disrepair," Koda explained, "The whole Sato family died in the first invasion. When the town started to rebuild, no one had the resources to keep the field. There was no longer the demand for the fruits anymore. Many people moved away. It was too much to rebuild. Most of the town is still in bad shape. Pita, and Hano, they all moved to neighbouring towns. Very few have stuck around."

"What about my brother?"

"He stuck around. He helped to rebuild most of town. He's doing well."

Rin looked around at the field that we used to work in. "So much has changed."

"Ten years is a long time. Where have you been?"

"To places that even I couldn't have imagined in my wildest dreams. I have seen so much and yet, I don't feel like I have seen very much."

"And we're still here living our little lives," Koda said, "It's about time that we continue on."

Koda went over to gather the others while Rin left and re-joined Ro, R5 and Dave. Ro was sitting down underneath a tree with Dave standing guard over her.

"We're heading out" Rin announced when he reached them. Ro couldn't see him coming and jumped a little.

"Are we still going with them?" Ro asked.

"Yeah I think that would be for the best."

"Is that really the best idea? It's no secret that they don't like us."

"I don't know what else to do."

She nodded. "Alright then."

"Is something wrong?"

"It's nothing."

"She has been complaining about not bringing anything to eat," Dave said.

Rin leapt up into the tree that Ro was sitting against. He gathered as many gava fruits that he could carry. He jumped back down and handed some to Ro. "These are gava fruits," he told her, "They're a little sour but they should work for you."

"Thank you." She bit into the fruit and made a face showing how sour the fruit was.

"Let's get going," Rin announced.

"Rin, wait," Ro said, "Do you know how to get rid of the Empire?"

Rin paused. He really had no idea how to make the Empire leave the planet. There were so many Stormtroopers there and how could he make sure that the Empire would not come bothering Keket again.

"You don't have a plan, do you?"

"I'm working on something."

"With the current strength of the Empire and with how scattered the Yokios are, they will most certainly loose," Dave stated, "But, if the Yokios people were able to unite and fight together against the Empire, they might stand a chance."

"But how can I do that?"

"I believe that you have already started by getting them to safety. You need to get as many people together as you can. Then you can unite them and lead them to a strong offence," the droid advised, "It is, as I hear, the best defence."

"But they are not warriors. They're farmers!" Rin said.

"True. But if the rest of your people are anything like you, they are very stubborn. I do not believe that they will go down without a fight. They were able to fight back the droid army by themselves. They can do that with the Empire."

Rin nodded. "Alright. Let's get them together. I hope this works."

"I think that it would be best if I was to scout ahead and find out the strength of the Empire's presence here. It will help us in our fight against them," Dave suggested, "Also, your people do not like me very much. I would like to remain functioning."

"Go. But be careful."

R5 squeaked and nuzzled up against Dave's leg.

"I will be alright. I will be back," he said as he softly patted her on the head.

Dave disappeared into the trees and R5 called out to him. She made a sad little noise when she could no longer hear him.

"Those two have a very strange relationship," Ro whispered to Rin.

"Very."


	13. Chapter 13: Rin vs the Inquisitors

Chapter 13: Rin vs. the Inquisitors

It took another hour to reach the northern cliffs. The cliffs were high and were covered in caves. The cliffs used to be used to mine stone for the houses in town. But after the town was built, the mines had closed up and were abandoned. The town started to use another mine that was farther away but it was safer and had better resources than the cliffs.

It didn't look like anyone else was there. There were some footprints around the entrances but they were several days old. They were probably made by kids playing around the mine.

Koda led everyone inside. After a couple hundred meters the tunnel opened to a chamber with two tunnels leading off. The caves were cold and dusty but at least they were safe. For the time being at least.

"Well this is great," Ro said as she entered the chamber, "But now what? How are we going to do anything here?"

"We're safe here," Koda told her, "And that's what matters."

Rin grabbed Koda's arm. "She's right. We can't just stay here and do nothing. If we do that, then the Empire is just going to take over."

"And what is it that you expect us to do? We've tried fighting them like last time and it didn't work!" the old woman from before said.

"That's because it isn't like last time," Rin explained, "The Empire is not the Separatists. They are more organised and better prepared. That means that we have to be too. We are too separated the way we are now. We need a coordinated plan."

There was chatter in the crowd but nothing conclusive.

"Rin, I don't know if that is possible. We are not a united people," Koda said

R5 rolled up beside them and bumped into Rin.

"What is it girl?" Rin asked.

"That's a girl?"

R5 beeped and squawked.

"Where?"

She squeaked.

"Alright. I'm on my way."

Koda grabbed Rin's arm. "You understood that thing?"

R5 seemed to take offence to being called a thing because she started rocked back and forth and squawking.

"Yeah. Easy girl. She doesn't like being called a 'thing'."

"What did she tell you?"

"She said that she picked up a group being attack by the Stormtroopers and Inquisitors just a few kilometres from here. I'm going to go and help them."

Koda nodded. "You can't go out there by yourself."

"Well you're free to come with me if you want."

Koda looked conflicted. He looked around to the others that were huddled in the caves and to his son. "I-I can't abandon them."

"I'm not asking you to."

Reluctantly Koda shook his head. "I can't."

"Can't or won't," Ro said loudly, "You just heard about more of your people being in trouble and you're not doing anything about it. Why? You should be trying to help them."

"It's not that simple."

Rin put a hand on her shoulder. "Ro, it's alright."

"No it's not. You shouldn't be the only one here that is willing to risk your neck for your people. I know that I don't have a lot of skills that are useful here, but at least I came to try and help. I don't know about the rest of you, but I can't stand by and watch as innocent people become victims of the Empire. You aren't even my people but yet I still want to help. Surely there someone among you that is willing to help their fellow man."

There was silence from the crowd.

Rin knew that his people were not fond of cooperation, but he didn't realize that it was this bad. That many really didn't care that there were other Yokios being slaughtered.

"Thanks for trying, Ro," he said quietly, "But I can see that I'm on my own. Stay here with R5."

"But-"

"Stay. I appreciate the effort though."

Rin turned and left the caves. If they wouldn't help him, he would have to do this himself. He ran through the woods towards where R5 had said there were Yokios being attacked by Inquisitors and Stormtroopers. As he got closer he could hear the sounds of blasters and cries. There was also the sound of scraping metal and clanging. Did the Empire bring walkers?

There was something that seemed to be pulling Rin towards the Yokios. There was someone ahead of him that was familiar. He recognized the presence. It was Reggie. Rin ran faster. His brother was trouble.

Rin skidded to a stop at the edge of the woods. There was a bright light and Rin hid behind a tree. The light moved as metal groaned and rattled. He was at the top of a hill looking down upon the Imperial forces. There were three AT-AS patrolling the area with bright spotlights. There were easily thirty Stormtroopers and two Inquisitors around thirty seven Yokios. They had separated the children from the adults. The children were being guarded by the Inquisitors while the Stormtroopers were lining up the adults in a line of five for a firing line. There was already a pile of bodies from an earlier line.

The situation seemed tough. He was only one against thirty Stormtroopers and two Inquisitors all while keeping his people safe. He would need a big distraction. The Stormtroopers were about to fire on their firing line. For a moment, Rin thought that the one on the far left was his father. It looked like his father but the cato on his face didn't match. It was Reggie. His hair was a little longer and he was a little heavier set, but it was him. His hands were bound in front of him and he was being blinded by the light.

Rin reached for the lightsabre on his belt that he had taken from one of the Inquisitors. The spinning attachment might come in handy after all.

"Ready." A Stormtrooper yelled.

The troopers raised their weapons.

"Aim."

Rin activated the lightsabre and threw it towards the AT-AS walkers. The lightsabre flew through the air spinning. It collided with the first walker, took out the spotlight and knocking it off balance. The lightsabre seemed to bounce of the walker and towards the next one.

It was chaos in the clearing. Troopers started yelling, barking orders. Some were just standing there dumbfounded. Rin ran down to the clearing. With a wave of his hand he pushed away the Stormtroopers from the firing line. The lightsabre returned to him and he caught it with one hand. The lightsabre gave away his position and the Stormtroopers started firing on him. Rin started spinning the lightsabre and deflected the blaster bolts.

All of the attention was on Rin so no one was paying attention to the prisoners. The adults were able to sneak away and gather their children. Rin could see them escape into the woods.

"Stop firing!" a man ordered.

The Stormtroopers stopped firing on him and cleared away to let the Inquisitors in. There was a tall thin male which Rin thought was the Inquisitor from before. The other one was almost as tall and was female. The still didn't remove their masks. They drew their own lightsabres and circled him.

"That lightsabre does not belong to you," the man said, "You stole it from one of our comrades."

"I'll be happy to give it back to you as soon as you leave this planet," Rin replied.

"We will leave as soon as we have completed our mission," said the woman.

"And what mission is that? Whenever the Empire is convinced that you are Jedi killers. These people are innocent. Why bring them into this?"

"They may be innocent, but you aren't Jedi," the woman said, "The Emperor has ordered that all remaining Jedi are to be exterminated. And we are all too happy to do so."

"Then what are you waiting for?"

The woman rushed at him from the left. Rin blocked the attack with his lightsabre. The man rushed him as well. Rin pushed the woman back and blocked the man just in time. The woman came back and swung at his legs. At the same time the man started aiming higher. Rin was able to block both of them but the attacks started to become faster and harder. While Rin had blocked another of the man's attacks, the woman was able to slash his left thigh.

Rin waved his hands and pushed the Inquisitors back. His thigh was bleeding badly but the cut was not deep.

"Getting tired are we?" the woman mocked.

"I'm just getting started."

The woman rushed at him again. This time Rin deflected the attack spun and elbowed her in the gut. The man attacked high and Rin blocked. The man was pushing down hard. Pain shot though Rin's leg as he tried to hold the man back. He pulled back from the block and the man stumbled forward into the woman. She leapt over the man and Rin. She was fast. She landed behind Rin and slashed across his back before he could react.

The wound was still not deep but was painful. The woman did a shallow slash on purpose. She was certainly the most skilled of the two Inquisitors and more sadistic.

The Inquisitors were beating him and if he didn't do something to level the playing field, he wouldn't last much longer. Maybe he could put them at a disadvantage.

She rushed towards him again. Rin pushed her back into the man. They fell into a tangled heap. Rin turned off his lightsabre and disappeared into the shadows. The Inquisitors searched for him but they could not find him.

"Hiding are we?" the woman sneered, "Coward!"

"Get the lights back on!" the man ordered.

With a wave of his hand, Rin picked up a crate and threw it at the man. He cut through the crate just before it hit him. Rin did the same with other equipment. Anything that wasn't tied down was thrown at the Inquisitors. They were able to stop most before it hit them but there were still a few pieces that got through. A rock hit the woman and knocked her helmet off. She was a Mirialan with diamond shapes on her cheeks. The man looked like he was getting tired. He seemed to be favouring his right arm after being hit with a crate.

Several Stormtroopers came forward with handheld flashlights. The lights weren't very bright but one was able to catch Rin in the light.

The man rushed him again. Rin jumped over the man, wrapped his tail around the man's right arm and pulled him to the ground. There was a pop and Rin felt the man's shoulder pop out of place. The woman started attacking him both high and low. She was fast. She attacked with the lightsabre with one hand and with the other hand punched Rin in the thigh where she had cut him. He cried out in pain as his leg gave out from under him. She knocked away the lightsabre and cut his right arm. The wound was still shallow.

"Stop playing around with him and finish him," the man ordered.

"But he's cute," she pouted in a girlish tone, "And we were having so much fun."

"Do it!" he barked.

"Alright already. So impatient."

She raised her lightsabre so it was level with Rin's nose. She pulled back, ready to swing but she stopped.

"Do you hear something?"

There was a sound of groaning metal. All three AT-AS walkers tipped over. Yokios started running from the trees. Some were carrying sticks while others were throwing stones and boulders using spirit energy. The Stormtrooper tried to fire back but they couldn't see at who they were shooting at.

"Fall back!" the male Inquisitor order.

The female leaned over Rin. "Don't think that this is over. The test was a success. You'll be hearing from us again. Or, maybe you won't."

She raised her lightsabre to finish him off but she was pushed back by an invisible force. She hit the side of a collapsed AT-AS walker and was knocked out. The other Inquisitor picked her up and carried her off as they retreated.

Rin watched as his people drove off the Inquisitors and the Stormtroopers. He thought that he had seen Dave among the Yokios but that didn't seem plausible. It also looked like some were carrying blasters. His head was starting to spin as the adrenaline was wearing off.

"Rin!" someone called. There was scuffing in the dirt and someone was beside him in the dirt holding him up, "It's going to be alright."

"Reggie?"

"Yeah, it's me. Let's get you out of here."

Reggie pulled Rin to his feet. There was an explosion and both were knocked to the ground. Some hit him across the head and he could feel blood running down his face. Rin's ears were ringing and his vision was going blurry as he was pulled to his feet again. Reggie wasn't alone in the rescue. Dave was also with laying down cover fire. They stopped in a small clearing when they could no longer hear the commotion. Reggie helped Rin sit on a log and gave him a cup of water. The cool liquid felt good and helped clear his head. Reggie started tearing strips of cloth and used them to tie off the wounds on Rin's thigh and arm.

"You got yourself pretty banged up this time, huh?" Reggie said as he tied off the wounds.

"I've had worse," Rin said, "Ow!"

Dave appeared from the trees. "The Empire appears to be retreating. The rest of our forces are regrouping at the north cliffs."

"Our forces?"

"C'mon, let's get you out of here and fixed up," Reggie said.

Reggie pulled Rin to his feet. The world started spinning and Rin felt his legs give out from under him. Everything went dark.

When Rin awoke, he was lying on a stone floor. There was a blanket between him and the ground but it did nothing to make it more comfortable. He was stiff and sore all over. His head was throbbing along with his right arm, left leg and back. He had a heavy blanket on him but he was still cold. He was cold because his clothes were gone. He was laying on the stone in his underwear and socks. Rin tried to move but his body felt heavy. His arm, leg and torso had bandages wrapped around them.

He opened his eyes and he could see that he was in some sort of cave. It was quiet where he was but he could here loud conversations from another chamber. There were others around him who were also wrapped in bandages. There were a few women who were up and around, tending to the injured.

One of the older women noticed that he was awake and motioned for a younger one to go outside. The first woman approached him and knelt down beside him.

"How are you feeling?" she asked him.

"Sore," Rin replied, "Where am I?"

"In the caves of the northern cliffs," she replied.

Behind her Reggie appeared from the tunnel that the younger girl had come from. The older woman stood and went to tend to other patients and Reggie knelt down beside him. He didn't say anything for a moment. He looked very serious.

"Don't you dare scare me like that again," Reggie finally said.

"I'll do my best not to."

Reggie reached down and pulled Rin into a tight hug. Rin tried to hug back but Reggie was holding him where his back had been slashed.

"Reggie, my back," he groaned.

"No. Serves you right for staying away for so long," Reggie finally let go and steadied Rin in a sitting position, "I don't know if I am angry at you or glad that you're still alive. Ten years. Rin, you've been gone for ten years."

"I know. I'm sorry that it's been so long."

"Why didn't you come back sooner?"

Rin shrugged. "I don't know. I have been living behind the excuse that it was because I was banished. But that's not the real reason. I guess that it was because I was afraid to admit that I had failed."

"What do you mean?"

"I had set out to prove that I deserved this cato on my arm. And after everything I have been through, I feel like I have failed that. I don't deserve this cato. I have managed to earn the one of my face though."

"Then you must have been watching someone else fight those people. Rin, you were incredible. You came back to fight for us. You make me proud to call you my little brother."

"Thanks. What happened to the Empire and Inquisitors?"

"They all left. We were able to drive them off. All of the ships and everything are gone."

"What?"

"Yeah. Shortly after I got you here, they left."

Rin remembered what the female Inquisitor had said to him just before she was about to kill him. They had passed the test. Did that mean that they would be back? This wasn't over. It was definitely not the last that he had heard of the Inquisitors.


	14. Chapter 14: A united people

Chapter 14: A united people

Rin was able to walk around some later that day. Dave had arrived with a change of clothes for him that he got from the ship. The caves were crowded and there was very little room to move around. This normally would have been bad for the Yokios but they were actually cooperating. Rin couldn't believe it himself.

He found Reggie and Ro sitting together outside of the caves. There was a small campfire burning that they were sitting around. There was also a woman about Reggie's age that Rin recognized as Till, Reggie's wife. She was holding a four year old boy on her knee with two girls around seven and nine on either side of her. They were laughing as Reggie was telling a story.

"And he is so drunk that he ends up tripping over his own tail and takes down the buffet table with him. I don't think that I have ever seen our mother as mad as she was that night. My father and I couldn't stop laughing for an hour," Reggie stopped his story when he heard Rin approach.

"What you talking about?" Rin asked.

Ro snickered.

"What?"

"I'm just telling them about the time and Father and I got you drunk at my wedding," Reggie answered.

"I remember that. But I don't remember tripping over my tail and crashing into the buffet table."

"Well it's no wonder considering how much they gave you," Ro said.

"I was thirteen. And it wasn't that bad."

"It was that bad," Till and Reggie said in unison.

"Didn't you ever wonder why you woke up two days later with chunks of kizer in your hair?" Reggie asked.

Rin thought about it but he couldn't recall much of Reggie's wedding. It had been years since he even had thought of that. It seemed so long ago. Like it had happened to another person.

"Anyway, come and sit down," Reggie said, "There are some very important people that I want you to meet." Rin sat down between his brother and Ro, "I would like to introduce you to your nieces and nephew. This is Minta," he points to the oldest girl beside Till, "this is Dankia," he points to the other girl, "and finally this in Rinji."

"Daddy says that you are a hero," Minta said.

"Does he? Well I have no idea where he gets that idea from."

"You uncle is a hero," Ro added, "He saved me from dangerous men and gave me a place to stay. He was also once part of a great organization whose goal was to bring peace to the galaxy. That was how he was able to beat the Inquisitors and saved you."

"Really?" Rinji asked with wide eyes.

"Uh, well, she's making it sound more impressive than it actually was. I didn't beat them."

"Just go along with it," Ro told him.

Rin groaned. He did not like the attention.

"Ro, where did you get those clothes?" he asked her.

She was wearing new clothes that he had not seen her in before. He clothes looked brand new. As if they were right from the store.

"Oh, well, um, Dave and I sort of took some liberties with the cargo. We just took anything that we could use here. It's not like you're going to be able to deliver it now anyway. So we took the crates that had medical supplies, food and clothing. We didn't take everything. We left the kitchen appliances since they won't be of any use here. I can't believe you don't have electricity."

"How did you get it here?"

"We used the speeders that were meant for a dealership on Dakar."

"We're grateful for the supplies," Reggie said, "Because of the supplies you brought; we were able to help a lot of people."

Rin looked out over the landscape. There were several coils of smoke and there were still some fires burning off in the distance. The sky had clouded over and it looked like it was going to rain. The rain would put out the remaining fires. So much had happened in the ten years that he had been away. He had changed but so had his home.

A noise in the bushes caught Rin's attention. About twenty Yokios appeared from the woods. They looked weary. Some had injuries and they were all covered in dirt. An old man stepped forward and walked up towards him. Rin recognized him as the chief.

"I heard that this is a place of sanctuary," the chief croaked. The chief sounded out of breath and like he had been coughing a lot.

"It is," Till answered. She set Rinji down and showed the new arrivals inside the caves.

The chief stopped when he saw Rin and Ro.

"You!" he exclaimed, "I thought that you were told to never come back. And you bring more outsiders here."

Reggie stood up and faced the chief. "If it wasn't for him, we would all be dead. Rin beat the Empire."

"He's a traitor! He-" the chief started coughing.

"Father," a young woman rushed to his side.

"Come. Let's take him inside," Till ushered the chief and his daughter into the caves.

"Why is everyone converging here?" Rin asked.

"We had sent word to other survivors that this is a safe place," Reggie explained, "We're going to see if we can't try and be more united."

"What brought this about?"

Reggie motioned to Ro. "It was her. From what I understand, after you left Koda and his group, she had managed to convince them to go after you. She convinced them that it was only by working together that we could defeat the Empire. I think that it is really because of her that both of us are here right now."

Rin looked over at Ro in amazement. "You were able to convince them to come after me? How? Actually it doesn't matter. Thank you."

Ro blushed. "It was nothing. You were in danger. And I knew that if you couldn't beat the Inquisitors, than they wouldn't have stood a chance. I couldn't let the Empire take another world. I really couldn't have done it without you. I think it was you that convinced them."

"I could never convince them of anything. It was all you. You were the one who convinced me to even come here."

Ro smiled then looked down at her feet and began to fiddle with a stone that was in her hands. "Actually Rin, there was something that I've been think about since we got here. I have enjoyed working with you, but I think that when we leave, I won't be staying around. I would like to try and fight back against the Empire. My father left me a list of people than I could contact if I needed help. I want to see if I can go with them and stand up against the Empire."

"I think that is a good idea," Rin said.

"I would like it if you would come with me."

"Wait, does this mean that you will be leaving soon?" Reggie asked.

Rin glanced at his brother and Ro. He was proud of Ro for wanting to fight against the Empire. It was the right thing for her to do. But what about him? He couldn't go back to his old life. He wasn't sure if he was meant to fight the Empire.

"I…don't know," Rin said slowly, "I think that it is best if, uh, we don't stay too long."

"Oh, I see," Reggie said, "Well, I better get these kids to bed."

He scooped Rinji up. He was already asleep on the ground. The girls followed Reggie inside.

Rin also got up and started walking towards the woods.

"Where are you going?" Rin asked.

"I'm just going for a walk. I need some time to think."

Rin didn't return to the caves until the next morning. He did get caught in the rain but he had taken shelter under a tree. He had spent the majority of the night walking around trying to figure out what to do.

Rin wanted to do something against the Empire but he wasn't sure if joining some rebel movement was the best way to do that. He also didn't want to leave his brother and his home so soon after returning. But he wasn't sure if he would ever be able to belong to this world again. It was the internal debate that kept him up all night. But after the whole night of debate, he had come to a decision.

He found Ro just outside of the cave. She was helping a group of women make some food for the ever growing group. She had a headlamp on so she could see what she was doing.

"Rin!" she exclaimed when he approached her, "Where have you been? Have you been out all night?"

"I have. There were a couple things that I had to work through. I have to talk to you."

"Okay."

"I don't think that I can come with you."

"You don't want to fight the Empire? What are you going to do? You can't go back to your old job."

"I know that. And I still want to do something against the Empire I just don't think that joining some rebel cell is the best thing for me."

She nodded. "I understand. It's not for everyone. I'm sure that we will run into each other again."

"Actually Ro, we won't."

She gave him a puzzled look.

Rin took a deep breath. "I will be staying here. I want you to take Dave, R5 and the ship. The stuff in there will be useful to the resistance."

"But why?"

"This is my home, and I want to protect it. I feel that I can do more here. The Empire might try something again. I need to be here."

"You're sure about this?"

"I am."

She wrapped her hand around his neck and pulled him into a hug. "I'll miss you."

Rin hugged her back. "Me too."

Ro was ready to leave later that day. Rin and Reggie escorted her to the ship. He showed her how to get the ship up and running and told her to let R5 to do most of the flying. When he could no longer think of things to tell her about the ship, it was time to say goodbye.

"Well, I guess that this is it," Rin said as they were standing outside of the ship.

"Are you sure that I can't convince you to come with me?" Ro asked. It looked like she was trying to fight back tears.

"I'm sure," Rin said even though he was having doubts at that moment.

R5 nuzzled up against his leg. She sounded like she was purring.

"I'll miss you too, girl," he knelt down and patted her on the head, "Take care of yourself and stay out of trouble. Don't give Ro too much trouble."

She rattled and squawked before pushing into him and knocking him over.

"Hey!" Rin stood and wiped the dirt off. "Dave, take care of them."

"Roger, roger. I would like to also say that I told you so."

"You told me what?"

"I told you that it would be good to have a friend that was not a droid."

Rin nodded. "You did. I will miss you old friend."

"And I you."

Dave held out his hand for a handshake but Rin hugged the droid.

Finally it was time to say goodbye to Ro.

"It's hard to believe that it has only been a week since we first met," said Ro, "It feels like I have known you for so long. And to think this all started when I tried to pick your pocket in Kejimkujik."

"I'm glad that we did meet. I think that we both got something that we both desperately needed. My mother used to say that spirit energy guides our actions. I think that I was meant to come back here just like you're meant to join the resistance."

"I hope you find whatever it is you are looking for."

"You too. I know that you will make your parents and Aurora proud," Rin paused, "There is something that I want you to do. Your first mission as a member of the resistance. I want you to destroy all information that the Empire has on this place. I want you to destroy all knowledge about Keket, the Yokios, and about me. I don't want the Empire, or anyone else to ever come back here trying to invade. My people live in isolation and I think that is best for them for the time being. Can you do that for me?"

Ro nodded. A tear ran down her face. "I will. I will do my best to keep your people safe."

"Thank you."

She hugged him and started to cry. Rin could feel her warm tears on his shirt. He slowly pushed her away.

"You should be going."

Ro nodded. She turned and walked up the gangplank to the cargo hold with Dave and R5. When she reached the top of the ramp she turned and looked back at him.

"Hey Rin, may the Force be with you."

He smiled. "May the Force be with you."

The ramp closed and the engines started up. Rin took several steps back next to Reggie. He lifted his arm to protect him from the dirt being blowing by the engines. The ship lifted off and soared to the skies. In less than a minute, it was just a dot in the night sky.

There was an ache in Rin's heart as he watched them leave. He would miss Ro, Dave, R5 and the wonders that the galaxy had to offer. But this was where he belonged. He was home. If he had never met her, he would have remained a cargo pilot in that lonely existence. He never wanted to fight the Empire but he was glad that he did.

"What was that about the force being with you?" Reggie asked.

"Oh, uh, it's a long story."

"A story that you are going to share?"

Rin hesitated for a moment. He thought of what Dave said. "Yeah. I will tell you the story. The story about my adventures in the universe and how I found my way home."

Fin


End file.
